title: Reward anticipation and outcomes in adult males with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.
abstract: Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has been suggested to involve deficits in reward processing. We used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to compare the neural responses to reward anticipation and outcomes in 10 adults with ADHD and 10 controls as they played a monetary incentive delay task. Adults with ADHD were unmedicated, and groups were matched for age, verbal IQ and smoking habits. Adults with ADHD showed decreased activation in the ventral striatum during the anticipation of gain, but increased activation of the orbitofrontal cortex in response to gain outcomes. Ventral striatal activation in adults with ADHD during gain anticipation was negatively correlated with self-rated symptoms of hyperactivity and impulsivity. These findings suggest that male adults with ADHD show neural signs of abnormal reward processing. Future studies will have to investigate whether these dysfunctional patterns might be normalized by treatment.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Campus Charité Mitte, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Schumannstr. 20/21, 10117 Berlin, Germany. andreas.stroehle@charite.de
authors.forename: Andreas
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ströhle
authors.forename: Meline
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Stoy
authors.forename: Jana
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wrase
authors.forename: Steffi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Schwarzer
authors.forename: Florian
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Schlagenhauf
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Huss
authors.forename: Jakob
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hein
authors.forename: Anke
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Nedderhut
authors.forename: Britta
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Neumann
authors.forename: Andreas
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gregor
authors.forename: Georg
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Juckel
authors.forename: Brian
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Knutson
authors.forename: Ulrike
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Lehmkuhl
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bauer
authors.forename: Andreas
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Heinz
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001289:Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology*; D003627:Data Interpretation, Statistical; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009042:Motivation; D017072:Neostriatum / Q000503:physiopathology; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D017397:Prefrontal Cortex / Q000503:physiopathology; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012201:Reward