Department of Behavioral Neuroscience, Oregon Health and Science University, 3181 SW Sam Jackson Park Rd., Portland, OR, 97239, USA.
Department of Psychiatry, Oregon Health and Science University, 3181 SW Sam Jackson Park Rd., Portland, OR, 97239, USA.
J Psychiatr Res. 2019 Sep;116:138-146. doi: 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2019.06.016. Epub 2019 Jun 18.
Atypical frontal alpha asymmetry is associated with the approach/withdrawal and affective processes implicated in many psychiatric disorders. Rightward alpha asymmetry, associated with high approach, is a putative endophenotype for attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). However, findings are inconsistent, likely because of a failure to consider emotional heterogeneity within the ADHD population. In addition, how this putative risk marker interacts with environmental factors known to increase symptom severity, such as parenting practices, has not been examined. The current study examined patterns of alpha asymmetry in a large sample of adolescents with and without ADHD, including the moderating role of negative affect and inconsistent discipline. Resting-state EEG was recorded from 169 well-characterized adolescents (nADHD = 79). Semi-structured clinical interviews and well-validated rating scales were used to create composites for negative affect and inconsistent discipline. The relationship between alpha asymmetry and ADHD diagnosis was moderated by negative affect. Right asymmetry was present only for those with ADHD and low levels of negative affect. In addition, greater right alpha asymmetry predicted severity of ADHD symptoms for those with the disorder, but only in the context of inconsistent parenting practices. Results confirm right alpha asymmetry is a possible endophenotype in ADHD but highlight the need to consider emotional heterogeneity and how biological risk interacts with child environment in order to fully characterize its relationship to disorder liability and severity.
非典型额侧α不对称与许多精神障碍中涉及的趋近/回避和情感过程有关。与高趋近相关的右额侧α不对称是注意缺陷多动障碍（ADHD）的一个假定的内表型。然而，研究结果并不一致，这可能是由于未能考虑 ADHD 人群中情绪的异质性。此外，这个假定的风险标志物如何与已知会增加症状严重程度的环境因素相互作用，例如育儿实践，尚未得到研究。本研究在一个包括 ADHD 患者和非 ADHD 患者的大样本青少年中检查了α不对称的模式，包括负性情绪和不一致的纪律的调节作用。从 169 名特征明确的青少年（nADHD=79）中记录了静息状态 EEG。半结构化临床访谈和经过充分验证的评定量表用于创建负性情绪和不一致纪律的综合指标。α不对称与 ADHD 诊断之间的关系受到负性情绪的调节。只有那些 ADHD 患者且负性情绪较低的人才表现出右不对称。此外，对于那些患有这种疾病的人，更大的右α不对称预示着 ADHD 症状的严重程度，但仅在不一致的育儿实践的背景下。结果证实右额侧α不对称可能是 ADHD 的一个内表型，但强调需要考虑情绪异质性以及生物风险如何与儿童环境相互作用，以便充分描述其与疾病易感性和严重程度的关系。
