Sensory Behaviours and Resting Parasympathetic Functions among Children with and without ADHD.

Previous studies suggest that parasympathetic functions support sensory behaviours. However, the relationship between sensory behaviours and parasympathetic functions remain inconclusive and inconsistent among children with and without attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). This research aims to examine the sensory behaviours and resting parasympathetic functions among children with and without ADHD. We compared sensory behaviours and baseline parasympathetic functions of 64 participants, with 42 typically developing and 24 ADHD male children aged 7-12 years. Sensory behaviours were evaluated using the sensory profile. Baseline parasympathetic functions were indexed using the normalized unit of heart rate variability high-frequency bands (HF n.u.). Children underwent an experimental protocol consisting of watching a silent cartoon movie while HF n.u. is continuously monitored, within a controlled environment. The results of this research showed significantly lower HF n.u. (t(64) = 7.84, p < 0.01) and sensory processing total score (t(64) = 14.13 = p < 0.01) among children with ADHD compared to their typically developing peers. Likewise, a significant moderate positive correlation (r = 0.36, p < 0.05) was found between the HF n.u. and sensory profile total scores among children with ADHD. Children with ADHD have significantly lower resting state parasympathetic functions compared to their typically developing peers.

The Role of Ethnicity and Environment in the Regulation of Response to Sensory Stimulus in Children: Protocol and Pilot Findings of a Neurophysiological Study.

BACKGROUND: The ability to regulate the response to sensory stimuli has been associated with successful behavioral patterns necessary for daily activities. However, it is not known whether a child's ethnicity and environment can influence autonomic regulatory mechanisms. OBJECTIVE: This study aims to explore the role of ethnicity and environment in the regulation of responses to sensory stimuli in children. METHODS: In this study, we intend to recruit 128 children from different ethnic groups or environment contexts as follows: (1) 32 typically developing Chinese children living in Hong Kong; (2) 32 typically developing Filipino children living in Hong Kong; (3) 32 typically developing Filipino children who are living in urban areas; and (4) 32 typically developing Filipino children who are living in rural areas in Philippines. Autonomic activity (heart rate variability [HRV] and electrodermal activity [EDA]) will be measured and recorded using Polar H2 heart rate monitor and eSense GSR skin response sensor. Autonomic activity (HRV-low frequency, HRV-high frequency, and EDA) at different conditions between pairwise groupings will be tested using multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA). All significant levels will be set at P ≤.05. RESULTS: We present the research protocol of this study, as well as a short discussion of the preliminary findings from our pilot data, with consequent power and sample size analysis that informs the appropriate sample needed to test our hypothesis. CONCLUSIONS: This study will increase the understanding on the role of individual differences related to a child's ethnicity and environment in the regulation of response to sensory stimuli. The findings of this research may further shed light on the evaluation and treatment planning for children across and within cultures.

Migration Influences on the Allostatic Load of Children: Systematic Review Protocol.

BACKGROUND: Migration is a worldwide phenomenon in recent times. Recently, documented studies suggest that the change in environments involved in migration may have an influence on children's allostatic load related to health and well-being. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this review is to systematically search the extant literature and critically examine the evidence on how migration affects allostatic load in children and describe the relevant methods in measuring allostatic load. METHODS: A systematic review will be conducted to recapitulate the evidence on the influence of migration on allostatic load and describe the methods employed in measuring allostatic load parameters among migrant children using the following search terms combinations: 1) allostasis OR allostatic OR allostatic load OR allosta*; 2) migration OR migrant OR immigration OR immigrant OR migra* OR *migra*; and 3) children OR child* OR adolescen*. We will search for peer-reviewed articles in English using a three-step process: title and abstract review, individual article review, and reference hand-searching among the following databases: Medline, CINAHL, ProQuest, PubMed, Science Direct and BioMed Central. Two independent review authors will analyze for data quality, level of evidence and risk of bias; a third review author will be consulted if consensus cannot be met. Data on study details, participant characteristics, allostatic load operationalization and description, methods, and results summary will be extracted. Evidence will be synthesized statistically when possible and narratively clustered into themes. RESULTS: At present, we have conducted only a preliminary search to test out our search terms. The systematic search, appraisal, synthesis and analysis will be finished by June 2018. It is projected that the manuscript that describes the systematic review will be available by the last quarter of 2018. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this systematic review have implications on supporting the concept of allostasis as a mechanism underlying the adaptive processes related to migration. Furthermore, our findings can lead to the development of innovative evidence-informed evaluation and intervention programs aimed at migrant children's needs. Likewise, it is hoped that this review can be an impetus to inform health and sociopolitical policies responsive of migrant children's current contexts. TRIAL REGISTRATION: International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO): CRD42017068895; https://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/display_record.php?RecordID=68895 (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/6wprRkxvA).