8A = THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
NEWS
THURSDAY,MAY1,2003
ADHD often under-diagnosed in college population
By Nikki Overfelt
noverfelt@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
Fritz Heffinger has only four hours in each day that he can really concentrate and study.
"I can't pull all nighters," the Chicago sophomore said.
Heffinger's study schedule does not revolve around a job or other activities, it revolves around his medication.
Heffinger has Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and his medication, Ritalin, works about four hours.
He normally takes it after he eats dinner. Heffinger said, so between 7 p.m. and 11 p.m. he is most productive and able to work on his homework.
[ ] "It's almost like split personalities." he said.
Although it was suspected that Helfinger had ADHD as a child, it
wasn't until coming to the University of Kansas that it was diagnosed. he said.
ADHD affects about 8 percent of school-age children, and about 75 percent of them continue to have symptoms as adults, said Mark Romereim, director of The Attention Center in Wichita.
"A lot of college students have it and aren't being treated," he said.
Romereim knows this from personal experience. That's why he chose to specialize in treating the disorder.
"It explains my life," he said. "I wanted to help people who have the same difficulties I had growing up."
Romereim wasn't diagnosed with ADHD until later in college, he said. It wasn't until he was put on academic probation from his scholarship for dropping classes
because he couldn't focus and study,he said.
Romereim sees college students now with these same problems, he said. Most students with ADHD are bright people who can get by with little studying in high school, he said, but when they come to college they struggle.
"If it wasn't the problem early, it can become a huge problem," Romereim said.
Myra Strother, director of the ADHD clinic at Watkins Memorial Health Center, sees a lot of students with the disorder. She agrees with Romereim that it is a disorder some students don't find out about until they struggle with studying in college.
"If anything, adults are underdiagnosed," she said.
Students with the disorder have a difficult time sitting down, focusing on homework and
remembering what they just read, he said. They often forget about assignments and sometimes even class, Romereim said.
There are a lot of misconceptions about this disorder, Romereim said.
ADHD is a genetic difference in brain function, in which the brains of people with the disorder preferentially focus on stimuli that are inherently interesting to them, according to The Attention Center's Web site.
The disorder is real and is genetic, Romereim said. People with ADHD are not lazy. They cannot overcome it with just willpower. They have to take medication too, he said.
As of January, Romereim has been treating some of his patients with a new medication, Straterra. Unlike Ritalin and Adderal, Straterra is not a stimulant.
It works around the clock, he
said, instead of in four-to-eight hour cycles. This is especially beneficial to college students. They can study whenever they want and it doesn't force them to study in a particular time frame. Romereim said.
There is also no potential for addiction because it is not a stimulant, he said.
Because Straterra is so new, it should be used cautiously, said Strother. All of the risks and side effects of the medication may not be known yet, she said.
Strother recommends students start with one of the stimulants, she said, and if one of those doesn't work, then try Straterra.
In order to treat students for ADHD at Watkins, a student must either have records documenting the diagnosis is from a previous doctor or undergo an evaluation at the University's Counseling and Psychological
Services, Strother said. The doctors at Watkins are strict about who ADHD medications are given to because of the potential for abuse; she said.
On top of the evaluation, CAPS also provides support groups for ADHD students when interest is expressed, said Pam Botts, associate director of CAPS. At CAPS they see a lot students with questions about whether they have the disorder and quite a few are actually diagnosed, she said.
For students like Heffinger, the help is invaluable. Through the University, Heffinger receives services such as tutoring and books on tape to help him with his ADHD, he said.
- Edited by Brandon Gay