Randomized trial observes altered aperiodic activity in ADHD, indicating developmental differences in neural function.
Key Points
This research investigates the age-related differences of aperiodic EEG activity in children with ADHD compared to typically developing peers, aiming to understand its link to the default mode network.
Included 110 medication-naïve children/adolescents with ADHD and 100 matched peers aged 6-14 years.
Derived aperiodic parameters (exponent, offset) and computed alpha-band DMN coherence.
Stratified sample into middle childhood (6-9 years) and early adolescence (10-14 years) for analysis.
ADHD participants exhibited significantly increased exponent and offset compared to controls.
Age-related decreases in aperiodic measures were attenuated in ADHD, showing developmental divergence.
In middle childhood, increased frontal offset correlated with inattention and hyperactivity; in early adolescence, it was linked to reduced DMN coherence.