A recent study suggests a three-month computer-based programme may improve attention in children with ADHD, though researchers caution that findings are preliminary and require more rigorous testing.
A three-month brain-training programme may help some children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder sharpen attention and reduce inattention in everyday settings, according to a study from Georgia that was published in The Open Psychology Journal. But the researchers themselves stress that the findings are only preliminary, and they stop short of claiming the programme caused the gains.
Led by Irma Khachidze of the Ivane Beritashvili Center of Experimental Biomedicine and Georgian National University in Tbilisi, the study followed 61 children aged seven to 11, most of them with the inattentive form of ADHD. Fifty-five completed the programme. The children, recruited from schools and psychological centres, took part in computer-based cognitive exercises twice a week for about half an hour at school, while also doing daily paper tasks.
The children were tested before and after the programme on several computerised measures of attention. Their parents and teachers also completed behaviour rating scales. After three months, the group showed improvements on a number of tasks, including vigilance, the Stroop test, which measures the ability to ignore distracting information, and a Go/No-Go task, which assesses response inhibition. Reaction times also improved on some exercises, and the strongest gains appeared to be in divided, focused and visuospatial attention.
Reports from parents and teachers suggested that some of those gains may have carried over into daily life. They noted less inattention on commonly used rating scales, hinting that the children were not only doing better in test conditions but were also showing change in the classroom and at home. Even so, the authors acknowledge several major limits: there was no control group, neither the children nor the assessors were blinded, some participants dropped out, and the study included a much larger younger age group than older one.
That caution is important because earlier research has painted a mixed picture of cognitive training for ADHD. A meta-analytic review published in 2013 found only limited benefits from programmes aimed at working memory, executive function and attention, with little evidence of lasting gains in academic, behavioural or broader cognitive outcomes. The authors also warned that some apparent improvements may reflect changes in how adults rate children after training rather than real underlying progress.
Other trials have been more encouraging. A randomised clinical study of the “Pay Attention!” programme reported improvements in behavioural and executive-function ratings, as well as on neuropsychological tests, though the researchers called for larger replication studies with proper control groups. More recent trials, including n-back training and brain-computer interface-based attention work, have also reported gains in inhibitory control and inattentive symptoms. Still, the overall message for parents and caregivers is one of cautious optimism: structured attention training may help some children, but better-designed studies are still needed to show whether the benefits are reliable, lasting and specific to the intervention itself.
Disclaimer: This content is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical judgment, advice, diagnosis, or treatment.
