Assessing inhibitory control deficits in adult ADHD: A systematic review and meta-analysis of the stop-signal task
medRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)(2022)
Abstract
Background In recent years, there has been an increasing quest in improving our understanding of neurocognitive deficits underlying adult attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Current statistical manuals of psychiatric disorders emphasize inattention and hyperactivity-impulsivity symptoms, but empirical studies have also shown consistent alterations in inhibitory control. Thus far, there is no established neuropsychological test to assess inhibitory control deficits in adult ADHD. A common paradigm for assessing response inhibition is the stop-signal task (SST).
Methods Following PRISMA-selection criteria, our systematic review and meta-analysis integrated the findings of 26 publications with 27 studies examining the SST in adult ADHD.
Results The meta-analysis, which included 883 patients with adult ADHD and 916 control participants, revealed reliable inhibitory control deficits, as expressed in prolonged SST response times, with a moderate effect size g = 0.51. The deficits were not moderated by study quality, sample characteristics or clinical parameters, suggesting that they may be a phenotype in this disorder. The analyses of secondary outcome measures revealed greater SST omission errors and reduced go accuracy in patients, indicative of altered sustained attention. However, only few (N<10) studies were available for these measures.
Discussion Our meta-analysis suggests that the SST could, in conjunction with other tests and questionnaires, become a valuable tool for the assessment of inhibitory control deficits in adult ADHD.
### Competing Interest Statement
The authors have declared no competing interest.
### Funding Statement
This study did not receive any specific funding.
### Author Declarations
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All data produced in the present work are contained in the manuscript.
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Key words
inhibitory control deficits,adult adhd,meta-analysis,stop-signal
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