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. 2023 Mar 28:17:1145485.
doi: 10.3389/fnins.2023.1145485. eCollection 2023.

Dorsolateral prefrontal cortex dysfunction caused by a go/no-go task in children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder: A functional near-infrared spectroscopy study

Ting Wu  1 , Xiaoli Liu  1 , Fang Cheng  1 , Shuai Wang  1 , Chang Li  1 , Dongsheng Zhou  1 , Wenwu Zhang  1
Affiliations

Dorsolateral prefrontal cortex dysfunction caused by a go/no-go task in children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder: A functional near-infrared spectroscopy study

Ting Wu et al. Front Neurosci. .

Abstract

Background: Children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) exhibit executive function deficits, which can be attributed to a dysfunction in the prefrontal region of the brain. Our study aims to evaluate the alteration of brain activity in children with ADHD during the administration of a go/no-go task using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) in comparison to a control group containing typically developing (TD) children.

Methods: 32 children with ADHD and 31 of their TD peers were recruited and asked to perform a go/no-go task while undergoing measurements, with the aim of detecting changes in average oxygenated hemoglobin signaling (Δavg oxy-Hb) via fNIRS in the prefrontal lobe.

Results: fNIRS data showed significant differences between the left and right dorsolateral prefrontal cortices, with a lower Δavg oxy-Hb change in the ADHD group compared to the TD group.

Conclusion: Our results indicate that brain dysfunction in children with ADHD is related to functional impairments in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. The go/no-go task paired with fNIRS represents a useful measurement tool to assess prefrontal brain dysfunction in children struggling with ADHD.

Keywords: attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD); children; dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC); functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS); go/no-go task.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Experimental design.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Schematic of arranged fNIRS channels. DLPFC, dorsolateral prefrontal cortex; mPFC, medial prefrontal cortex; TL, temporal lobe; R, right; L, left.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Hemodynamic changes during the performance of the go/no-go task. RDLPFC, right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex; LDLPFC, left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex; RmPFC, right medial prefrontal cortex; LmPFC, left medial prefrontal cortex; RTL, right temporal lobe; LTL, left temporal lobe. *p < 0.05.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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