Objective: Fidgeting is a common symptom in patients with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The current study investigated ADHD stimulant medication effects on fidgeting in adolescents with ADHD during a short research study session using wrist-worn accelerometers. Method: Adolescents with ADHD who had been taking stimulant medications (ADHD group) and adolescents without ADHD (control group) participated in the study. Accelerometer data were obtained from both wrists of each participant to track their hand movements during two hearing testing sessions. All subjects in the ADHD group abstained from their stimulant medications for at least 24 hours before their first session (off-med session). The second session (on-med session) was conducted about 60-90 minutes after medication intake. The control group participated in two sessions in a similar time frame. Results: The current study focuses on relationships between hand movements and stimulant medication in adolescents with ADHD. Both conditions were compared to evaluate the relationship of hand movements and stimulant medication. We hypothesized the ADHD group will exhibit less hand movements during the on-medication session in comparison to off-medication session. Conclusion: Wrist-worn accelerometer measures obtained during nonphysical tasks in a short duration may not provide hand movement differences between on-med and off-med conditions in adolescents with ADHD. ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT04577417.
Keywords: accelerometer; adolescents; hand movement.