A new study has found a “significant association” between adults who have suffered a traumatic brain injury at some point in their lives and who also have attention deficit hyperactive disorder.

So begins a recent article on the popular science website Eurekalert. The study, led by Dr Gabriela Ilie of Saint Michael’s Hospital, investigated the possibility of traumatic brain injury (TBI) as a causative factor for ADHD in both children and adults. According to the study, which focused on  people reporting past incidents of TBI, “5.9 percent reported having been diagnosed with ADHD in their lifetime and another 6.6 percent screened positive for ADHD…”

This is not be surprising says Dr Ilie, because some of the most persistent consequences of TBI include ADHD-like symptoms, such as memory and attention impairment, deficits in executive functions such as planning and organization, processing consonants and vowels and impulsive behaviour… Therefore it may be useful to assess TBI history during screening and assessment of ADHD in the adult population.

Dr Ilie’s findings, which were published in the Journal of Psychiatric Research, are consistent with those of other studies and add fuel to the fire of a growing consensus within the medical community that TBI may indeed play a significant role in the onset of ADHD. According to the study’s co-author Dr Robert Mann: “We see that adults with TBI are more than twice as likely than those without to report symptoms of ADHD.”

Sufferers of ADHD and their families often need assistance to help offset expensive treatments and therapies and yet many are unaware of one such means of assistance: the Disability Tax Credit. The Disability Tax Credit can provide individuals and families with up to $40,000 in tax credit to help them defray their medical expenses. This type of assistance can be incredibly useful in helping return a family or individual with ADHD to sound financial footing. (Find out if you qualify for the disability tax credit if you suffer from ADHD).

With the number of traumatic brain injuries increasing the worry is that ever greater numbers of people will develop ADHD. With no effective method for curing the disorder, the prospects are disturbing as children with ADHD often grow into adults who experience a rash of issues that impair their ability to function effectively, including:

• Inability to Organize – Adults with ADHD often find that simple organizational tasks can be overwhelming.
• Marital Issues – Adults with ADHD typically have poor listening skills which leads to misunderstandings and hurt feelings that can undermine a marriage.
• Poor Driving – Adults with ADHD may be more prone to distract themselves while driving by texting, searching for things in the glove compartment, or just constantly skipping through radio stations. This type of distracted driving often leads to accidents.
• Inability to Finish Tasks – This can be a major problem at work for adults with ADHD and can lead to an inability to advance on the job, poor performance evaluations, and career disappointment.
• Tardiness – Because adults with ADHD tend to get distracted easily they sometimes will find themselves making detours on the way to meeting up with people and subsequently arriving late.
• Emotional Outbursts – Adults with ADHD often a feel they have little control over events in their lives. This can lead to frustrations that quietly build within the sufferer and then burst out at unexpected times.
• Wasted time – Adults with ADHD will often spend vast amounts of time on things of little significance while failing to tackle pressing issues. This can be a significant problem at work.

Disability Tax Credit Canada has worked with thousands of disabled Canadians, helping them navigate government red tape and procure the maximum tax credit the law allows. The professionals at DCC are powerful advocates who will leave no stone unturned when working on your behalf. Recent changes in the Disability Tax Credit application process make it more important than ever that you have the right advice and the right people in your corner to help you and your family take advantage of this opportunity and start the process of financial recovery from ADHD.