Quick links about the event
About the days
Key takeaways
About the speakers
About the days
Friday 18 September, Professor Sam Cortese
Friday 25 September, Professor Edmund Sonuga-Barke
Our CPD ‘Masterclass Series’ delivers advanced, evidence-based training for those working in CYP mental health, to build upon their skills, knowledge and experience. They are interactive sessions, consisting of a series of lectures delivered by world-renowned experts in the field who focus on the latest research, and the implications for best-practice.
Neuroscience provides a rational basis for the discovery of new and/or more effective treatments for ADHD. Over the last twenty years our view of ADHD neurobiology has changed considerably, with modern views emphasising its complexity and heterogeneity. This provides a potential platform for personalised therapeutic approaches. Our increasing appreciation of the plastic nature of the brain during sensitive developmental windows highlights the potential value of psychological treatments delivered early in development. There is no evidence, from blind raters, suggesting that non-pharmacological strategies for ADHD are efficacious for ADHD core symptoms. The effect sizes for ADHD drugs from short term trials are amongst the highest not only in psychiatry but also in general medicine. Network meta-analyses aimed to rank ADHD treatments according to their efficacy/safety have been published or are being conducted.
Key takeaways
- Consider whether therapeutic intervention for ADHD depends on scientific progress
- Understand the role of genetic and environmental factors in the aetiology of ADHD, and the implications for treatment
- Recognise that ADHD is a neuro-biologically heterogeneous condition, and ask whether it is important to tailor treatments to address different causal profiles in different individuals
- To be aware of, and critically appraise, available evidence synthesis on the pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatments for ADHD
- To appreciate to which extent current guidelines are based on empirical evidence
“Excellent Masterclass! Very informative with clear practical tips, with clear articulate speakers.” Previous delegate
About the speakers
Professor of Developmental Psychology and Neuroscience, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at the IoPPN, Kings College London
Edmund Sonuga-Barke is Professor of Developmental Psychology, Psychiatry and Neuroscience working in the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at the Institute of Psychology, Psychiatry and Neuroscience, King’s College London. He also holds a visiting chair at the University of Sussex, and is Editor in Chief of the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry.
His work integrates Developmental Psychopathology and Neuroscience perspectives to employing basic developmental science approaches to study the pathogenesis of neuro-developmental and mental health conditions; their underlying genetic and environmental risks, mediating brain mechanisms and developmental outcomes. He has a particular interest in ADHD and related disorders. In 2016, Prof Sonuga-Barke was elected a Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences.
Samuele Cortese, Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist, is Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at the University of Southampton and Honorary Consultant Child Psychiatrist at the Solent NHS Trust. He is also Adjunct Associate Professor at the University of New York, USA. His main clinical and research interests focus on the epidemiology, neurobiology and treatment of neurodevelopmental disorders (in particular on ADHD) and on evidence-based practice in child psychiatry. Dr. Cortese is author/co-author of more than 200 papers in international peer-reviewed journals. He is on the editorial board of the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, (JAACAP), Child and Adolescent Mental Health (CAMH), Evidence Based Mental Health (EBMH), CNS Drugs and on the advisory board of the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry. Dr. Cortese is a member of the European Network for Hyperkinetic Disorder (EUNETHYDIS), the European ADHD Guidelines Group (EAGG), and the Child & Adolescent Neuropsychopharmacology Network of the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ECNP).