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This study examined the effectiveness of a mindfulness-based intervention (MBI) on Conners’ continuous performance test scores (CPTs), cardiac vagal control (CVC) assessed by vagally mediated heart rate variability (HRV), and mood in children and adolescents with ADHD. We conducted a randomized controlled trial (RCT) recruiting 70 children and adolescents (M age 11.03, SD 2.78) with a clinical diagnosis of ADHD, which were allocated to either 1 session of mindfulness cognitive training, or an active control condition and were examined at baseline, post-treatment and 4-week follow-up. See clinicaltrials.gov: NCT04316832. There was a significant main effect of time on the primary outcomes measured by CPT scores of attention-related problems (omission errors, reaction time) and hyperactivity–impulsivity (commission errors). However, time-by-group interaction did not achieve statistical significance for commission errors and hit RT, indicating that the changes over time in these outcomes were not significantly different between the MBI and Control conditions. In addition, there was a significant time-by-group interaction for omission errors. Relative to control, MBI resulted in a small ( d = 0.011) non-statistically significant reduction in omission errors post-treatment. Furthermore, there were no significant differences in detectability. Secondary outcomes were CVC and mood. A small treatment effect on CVC ( d = 0.37) was observed; there was a slight increase in vagally mediated HRV measure post-treatment. There were no significant differences in mood improvement over time between conditions. One brief session of MBI effectively enhances CVC but does not significantly improve CPT scores of attention-related problems and hyperactivity–impulsivity or mood in children with ADHD. Clinicaltrials.gov: NCT04316832.

Autonomic nervous system (ANS) dysregulation, characterized by reduced vagally mediated Heart Rate Variability (HRV), has been associated with Attention-Deficit/ Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). This study investigated the dynamic vagal modulation of cardiac output in response to shifts in environmental demands in children and adolescents with ADHD, with and without a comorbid anxiety disorder. Highfrequency HRV (HF-HRV) measures were obtained from 46 children and adolescents ranging from 6 to 17 (M = 9.38; SD = 2.31) years old, during three successive experimental conditions: a baseline recording followed by a sustained attention task, and a post-task recovery period. Findings support the reliability of the d2 Test, a cancelation test of attention and concentration, to induce parasympathetic withdrawal and extend prior work on "vagal flexibility". Further, these findings suggest a pattern of group differences in ANS functioning in children with ADHD, with and without a comorbid anxiety disorder. Only the ADHD without comorbid anxiety group showed a normative autonomic response to the cognitive challenge (reduced HF-HRV). The participants did not display an adaptive process of restoration following the cognitive challenge; the HRV suppression was prolonged during post-task recovery period, suggesting that ANS responded as if the cognitive stressor was still present. The current paper covers and discusses theoretical implications for the abnormalities in neurophysiological functioning and the different physiological responses in the two ADHD subtypes.

Introduction: Juvenile delinquency represents a broad term to identify behaviors that vary from engaging in status offenses (eg running away from home, school absenteeism, alcohol consumption) up to engage in criminal acts and violence (use / distribution of illegal substances, burglary, robbery). (Montgomery & colab., 2001) Objectives: Identifying personality disorders in delinquent adolescents. Aims: This paper aimed to determine if juvenile deliquency is related to personality disorders and a set of risk factors. Method: We used a lot of 30 patients, aged 14-18 years, subjected to forensic examination at the Child Psychiatry Clinic of Cluj-Napoca during 2011. To assess personality disorders we used SCID II-structured interview to identify personality disorders on axis II-DSM and a set of questions related to the origin area, socioeconomic status, education level, family environment, consumption of toxic, belonging to certain social groups, family history,were adressed to the adolescents and their parents. To assess intellectual coefficient were used Raven Progressive Matrices. Results: The most common personality disorders found in delinquent teenagers were borderline personality disorder, obsessive-compulsive personality disorder, narcissistic personality disorder and traits of antisocial personality disorder. We couldn't identify a statistically significant relationship between the family environment, the socioeconomic status, the presence of a concurrent psychiatric disorder, the consumption of toxic, the education level and juvenile deliquency. Conclusions: Because juvenile delinquency represents a real social problem is important to identify underlying traits or personality disorders in order to establish individualized and specific treatment plans.

Abstract. The purpose of this study was to examine evidence of reliability, validity, and equity, for the Romanian version of The Screen for Child Anxiety Related Emotional Disorders (SCARED), the 41-item child- (1,106 children and adolescents ranging from 9 to 16 years old) and parent-ratings (485 parents). Both versions of the instrument showed moderate to high internal consistency, with most subscales reaching acceptable levels. Results showed support for the original five-factor structure of the scale. Positive correlations with other measures of anxiety symptoms, such as The Penn State Worry Questionnaire, The Social Anxiety Scale for Adolescents, The Children’s Automatic Thoughts Scale, whereas weak correlations with the syndrome scales for rule-breaking and aggressive behavior of the Youth Self-Report, respectively, Child Behavioral Checklist have demonstrated similar construct validity for the Romanian version of the scale as compared to the original one. Also, strict measurement invariance across age, gender, and clinical status was established. The current research provides evidence of reliability, validity, and equity for SCARED, arguing for its utility as a screening instrument for anxiety symptoms. Implications for theory, assessment, and future research are discussed.