What are the principles of treatment for ADHD?

  ADHD is treated using an individualized, long-term comprehensive treatment model that includes medication and behavioral therapy. The main treatments for ADHD are medication, psychotherapy, skills training, special education, and parent training. Some targeted training such as brain function feedback and sensory integration training is beneficial for treatment. Commonly used medications such as methylphenidate central stimulants, selective norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors, etc. Studies have shown that a combination of medication and behavioral therapy is most effective.  Psychotherapy is the preferred treatment for children with preschool and mild ADHD. It mainly focuses on psychotherapy and behavior modification of behavioral and emotional problems in children with ADHD to change the child’s poor behavior and emotional response patterns, improve interpersonal relationships, enhance their problem-solving and self-management skills, and build the child’s self-confidence. Skills training mainly includes social skills and physical skills training, which has a better effect on the long-term outcome of children with ADHD and the development of their occupations. Special education is an individualized program for children with ADHD with learning difficulties for 1-2 years. Parent training, which focuses on teaching parents how to manage the education of children with ADHD. It explains the reasons for the ADHD child’s oppositional behavior, provides guidance on how to focus on and praise the child, and how to correct the child’s bad behavior, so that parents can better understand the child’s needs and respond appropriately to his or her behavior, as well as reduce parental anxiety. Parent training can create a long-term, sustained, recovery-friendly environment in which children with ADHD can have a healthy future with the same parental care and attention as normal children.  The current medical consensus is that ADHD should be detected, diagnosed and treated early. The treatment should be standardized, individualized and comprehensive, and should be followed up for a long time.