Abstract
Children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have difficulty recognizing facial expressions. They identify angry expressions less accurately than typically developing (TD) children, yet little is known about their atypical neural basis for the recognition of facial expressions. Here, we used near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) to examine the distinctive cerebral hemodynamics of ADHD and TD children while they viewed happy and angry expressions. We measured the hemodynamic responses of 13 ADHD boys and 13 TD boys to happy and angry expressions at their bilateral temporal areas, which are sensitive to face processing. The ADHD children showed an increased concentration of oxy-Hb for happy faces but not for angry faces, while TD children showed increased oxy-Hb for both faces. Moreover, the individual peak latency of hemodynamic response in the right temporal area showed significantly greater variance in the ADHD group than in the TD group. Such atypical brain activity observed in ADHD boys may relate to their preserved ability to recognize a happy expression and their difficulty recognizing an angry expression. We firstly demonstrated that NIRS can be used to detect atypical hemodynamic response to facial expressions in ADHD children.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
