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ADD vs. ADHD
Tuesday, April 11, 2000
It used to be called Attention Deficit Disorder, or ADD.
Now, it's called ADHD, or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, according to the official diagnostic manual of the American Psychiatric Association.
And under that umbrella ADHD term, there are three subtypes listed: ADHD, primarily inattentive; ADHD, primarily hyperactive/impulsive, and ADHD, combined type, with the presence of all three behaviors.
But those with attention disorders -- many of them girls -- don't have any hyperactivity at all -- although their overall condition, ADHD, includes the word "hyperactive."
Isn't that a contradiction?
Yes, says Dr. Patricia Quinn. "It's really dumb. I don't have any idea why they insisted on labeling it that way."
Dr. David Shaffer, a Columbia University psychologist, co-chaired the group that worked on the ADHD section in association's diagnostic manual. He couldn't be reached for comment, but a colleague of his at Columbia, Dr. Laurence Greenhill, says he believes that the labeling stemmed from a desire to keep the inattentive subgroup from being listed under a separate disorder: Learning Disabilities.
"It would be nice to correct the name," said Greenhill. "It could be improved." And it probably will be, he added, once the association updates its manual to reflect changes in scientific knowledge.
For now, ADHD is the official clinical term, although ADD is still used interchangeably with it by advocates in the field.
-- Mackenzie Carpenter
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