The number of people diagnosed with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has risen dramatically in the United States over the last decade and has to be considered a serious public-health issue, says the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). The disorder is, however, beset by considerable misunderstanding among the public about how to treat it and what may cause it. Thus ADHD Awareness Week, which runs from October 16 to 22 this year, becomes an ever-more-important opportunity for psychiatrists, mental health professionals, educators, and parents to educate people about the fact that ADHD is real, diagnosing it is complex, it is nobody's fault, and multifaceted treatments are available that have demonstrated success in combatting many of the disorder's troubling symptoms. You can read extensive coverage of developments in understanding and treating ADHD in Psychiatric News at http://pn.psychiatryonline.org/content/46/12/19.full and http://pn.psychiatryonline.org/content/46/15/24.2.full. Also, read a psychiatrist's account of dealing with her own children's ADHD at http://pn.psychiatryonline.org/content/46/2/8.1.full.(Image: Suzanne Tucker/Shutterstock.com)
