There seems to be a clear association between ADHD and insecure attachment. It is likely that early intervention in the form of parent training and pharmacological treatment may prevent development of attachment problems. But such studies have not been carried out. Furthermore, adults with ADHD might need treatment for their lack of attachment competences as well. More research on this topic is much needed.

Background Research has pointed to secure attachment as a possible key factor of resilience in adulthood. Objective We aimed to investigate the role of secure attachment as a potential core feature in the properties of resilience. Methods We conducted a systematic review in accordance with PRISMA guidelines followed by a meta-analysis. Results Thirty-three studies were included in the review, and 10 of these, including 2305 subjects, were used for meta-analysis. The raw correlation coefficients ranged from .20 to .57, which indicated weak to moderate correlations between resilience and attachment. The synthesized correlation coefficients indicated that the correlations were significant and highly unlikely to be due to random variation. All studies are also reported on qualitatively. Conclusions In both of our meta-analyses and in the narratively reported studies, we found that secure attachment is associated with the presence of resilience.

i Methylphenidate for children and adolescents with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) (Review)

The experimental treatment does not seem to affect attachment competences compared with standard treatment alone. Children in the SOSTRA trial improved their attachment competences significantly at 6-month follow-up.

Background Epigenetic research has pointed to that the interaction between genetics and environmental factors may play a role in making some individuals more vulnerable than others. Aim The aim of this article was to present a broad perspective on the current state of knowledge in a relatively new and complex field of “attachment and epigenetic processes.” Method We conducted a scoping review based on a systematic literature search in PsycINFO, PubMed, and Embase databases for relevant abstracts using the terms attachment and epigenet*. Results In total, 11 studies were included. Research predating 2009 and animal studies were excluded in order to review the current state of research in humans. Conclusion Overall, there seems to be a consistency in the literature, pointing to a link between early childhood adversity, attachment processes, and epigenetic changes. However, research in human subjects is still limited.

No abstract

BackgroundRelatively little is known about the role of maternal functioning in terms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms, attachment style and resilience as predictive factors for treatment outcome when offspring are diagnosed with ADHD.ObjectiveTo investigate whether maternal functioning is associated with treatment outcome in children with ADHD.MethodsThe study formed part of a larger naturalistic observational study of children with ADHD. A battery of self-report measures was used to assess selected factors in maternal functioning at the point of referral (baseline data); adult ADHD-symptoms, adult attachment style and adult resilience. Associations between these domains and child treatment response were subsequently examined in a 1-year follow up.ResultsMaternal ADHD-symptoms and degree of resilience were significantly correlated to symptom reduction in offspring diagnosed with ADHD. However, the association between maternal attachment style and child treatment response as measured by the ADHD-RS did not reach statistical significance.ConclusionTo our knowledge, this is the first study to consider potential protective factors along with risk factors in maternal functioning and the impact on child treatment outcome. The study contributes to our knowledge of the potential role of maternal functioning in treatment outcome for children with ADHD.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s13034-018-0234-3) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

No abstract