Early identification of ADHD is critical when it comes to mitigating negative developmental consequences associated with the disorder. However, this can be especially difficult and there are currently no concrete biomarkers used to diagnose ADHD. A recent meta-analysis by Green and colleagues looked to explore the use of polygenic risk scores (PRS) that are generated from Genome-Wide Association Studies (GWAS) that may provide diagnostic clues as to the likelihood an individual has ADHD. More specifically, to compute the PRS for an individual, one sums the number of risk variants in their genome in a way that each variant is weighted by its association with ADHD. The higher the number, the more likely the individual is to develop ADHD. In this review, 33 studies were included where 16 of these studies with extractable data were included in the meta-analysis. Overall, the systemic review found significant associations between (1) the diagnosis and increased number of pediatric ADHD symptoms, (2) a persistent developmental trajectory of ADHD symptoms, (3) a more severe pattern of comorbid psychopathology, and (4) more impaired cognitive and educational outcomes. Additionally, the meta-analysis found that (1) higher ADHD-PRS scores were significantly associated with increased ADHD symptoms and increased odds of having an ADHD diagnosis and (2) higher ADHD-PRS were significantly associated with increased odds for anxiety/depression, ODD/irritability/emotional dysregulation. In conclusion, this review suggests that ADHD-PRS scores may become a valuable tool in diagnosing ADHD as well as provide a genetic basis for understanding a myriad of other psychiatric conditions.

Reference:

Green A et al. J Psychiatr Res. 2022;155:49-67 Abstract.