Abstract

BACKGROUND
The causes of ADHD(attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) are various, it is impossible to understand the whole characteristics of ADHD, only with simple intellignece testing scales. We compared cognitive characteristics of ADHD group with normal controls with Korean Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children(K-ABC), It is well known to evaluate neuropsychological and cognitive aspects of the children. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Age and sex matched 40 ADHD patients and 40 normal controls tested with the K-ABC. Each subscales compared between pre-treatment patients and controls, pre-treatment and post-treatment in patient group, post-treatment patients and controls. RESULTS: Significant differences are ovserved in sequential processing, simultaneous processing, cognitive processing and achievement between pre-treatment patients and controls, and in gestalt closure between pre-treatment and post-treatment patients group. But there are no significant differences between pre-treatment patients and controls in gestalt closure and reading/decoding. CONCLUSIONS: Methylphenidate improved the scores of simultaneous scale, which means improvement of executive functions such as divided attention, analysis and organization. Methylphenidate also reduced distractibility.

• Keywords: Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder;Korean Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children;Methylphenidate;