DIVA ADHD - Improving Adult ADHD Diagnosis
DIVA is a semistructured interview developed to improve ADHD assessment for adults. This study is designed to assess the criterion validity of DIVA 2.0 and its concomitant validity in comparison with Conners Adult ADHD Diagnostic Interview for DSM-IV (CAADID) criteria.
Compared to the top 20 attributes, DIVA attributes that correlate strongest with diagnosis are attention deficit for both childhood and adulthood and hyperactivity/impulsivity for adults, followed by CAARS ADHD TT1 score and IOWA personality disorders evaluation.
Symptoms
The symptoms of ADD/ADHD can affect all aspects of life from relationships and career progression to the everyday tasks that are part of our lives. That's why it is so important that our ADHD assessments take a holistic approach and look at how the symptoms impact all areas of our lives. During your assessment, Dr Schilling will begin by collecting details of your symptoms and health background. She will then take the DIVA 5 assessment, a semi-structured interview designed to examine both the core symptoms of ADD/ADHD as well as how those symptoms have impacted your life.
The DIVA is an interview tool designed by psychiatrists and psychotherapists to determine the signs of adult ADHD. It has been proven to have a high sensitivity to sound and a high degree of specificity. It is also highly efficient in identifying people suffering from the disorder. It has the potential to raise awareness of, and diagnose, adult ADHD in Korea, as it is the only validated semi-structured diagnostic test for adults with ADHD available in the country.
To perform the DIVA, a trained clinician - often a psychiatrist or psychologist - will ask questions about the main symptoms of ADHD which include inattention, hyperactivity, and the tendency to be impulsive. The doctor will also look at the history of the individual as well as their childhood experiences and their impact on their current behaviours. This is because the symptoms of ADHD do not just appear at a moment's notice, they are developed throughout one's childhood, teen years, and through adulthood.
The DIVA is able to effectively identify people suffering from ADHD, as it takes into account both the DSM-IV criteria for ADHD in adulthood and childhood, and how those symptoms have affected an person's daily functioning in five different areas of life - education work, family/partner relationships, family social activities/leisure time and self-esteem and self-confidence. As a contrast other screening tools, such as the WURS-brief, which was compared to CAADID, showed poor accuracy and negative predictive values.
Diagnosis
To diagnose ADHD in adults, it is crucial to assess the signs and symptoms along with their background. This can be done through an extensive interview about childhood symptoms as well as a neurological assessment. It is also crucial to assess the effects of the symptoms on the individual's life and work. This can be evaluated using a structured clinical interview, called the DIVA and, in some instances, asking for information from family members and friends.
The DIVA is a semi-structured interview that was initially designed for use with adults in the Netherlands. It has been re-edited to be used in other countries including Korea. This study examined the criterion that is valid for the Korean version (DIVA-5) using an actual clinical sample of patients with ADHD.
During the DIVA the doctor asks about the presence of ADHD symptoms during childhood and adulthood, the age at which symptoms begin to manifest, and the severity of impairment caused by those symptoms. The clinician will also collect different sociodemographic information and ask about any psychiatric co-morbidities.
The MINI-S as well as Version 5.0.0 and the Brief Alcohol Related Neuropsychological Impaired Screening Instrument (BEARNI) along with the Frontal Assessment Battery were used to determine if a psychiatric co-morbidity existed. Two psychiatrists with experience employed the structured diagnostic interview DIVA-5 in order to determine a clinical diagnosis of ADHD. They assessed symptoms in adulthood as well as childhood, and determined the duration of symptoms.
The sensitivity and specificity of DIVA-5 was found to be high for both inattention and hyperactivity/impulsivity symptoms in childhood and adulthood. This diagnostic tool was found to have good concordance with the WURS scale as well as fair concurrent validity with three self-report rating instruments: ASRS, FAB, and Sheehan's Dysfunction Inventory.
The sensitivity and specificity of the DIVA-5 was found to be high for all subtypes of ADHD in both inattention and hyperactivity/impulsivity in adulthood and during childhood. The accuracy of diagnosis of the DIVA-5 was found to be comparable with the accuracy of a clinical diagnosis established by two expert psychiatrists. This was in accordance with the sensitivity and specificity of earlier screening tools such as ASRS and WURS.
Treatment
Undiagnosed ADHD can have a major impact on your daily life. It can impact your relationships, academic performance and work. It can also impact the way you organize your daily life. A diagnosis can help you determine your strengths and weaknesses as well as provide solutions to help you manage your symptoms and mechanisms.
A licensed professional (typically a psychiatrist or a psychologist) will have an organized conversation with you using the DIVA-5 tool to evaluate your current symptoms. It will include standardised questions about your levels of hyperactivity, inattention, and impulsivity. It will also examine your personal history including childhood experiences to give you the full picture of the symptoms you are experiencing.
This approach is crucial for ensuring a thorough diagnosis of adult ADHD. This allows us to better understand your symptoms and inform your treatment.
The DIVA assessment is an extremely effective way of diagnosing adult ADHD and has high sensitivity and precision. It has also been proven to have good criterion valid when compared to self-report scales like the Wender Utah Rating Scales (WURS) or the ADHD-Rating Scale. It has good concurrent validity with these and reasonable validity with Sheehan's Dysfunction Inventory.
The DIVA evaluation, unlike traditional methods for assessing ADHD in adulthood, focuses on identifying the symptoms that occur during childhood and into adulthood. This increases the accuracy of the diagnoses and allows for a more accurate comparison of the sociodemographic characteristics of the two groups. The DIVA assessment also allows for consideration of the effects of co-existing disorders on the manifestation and severity of ADHD symptoms.
If your Psychologist is unable to recommend medication, you may need to make an appointment with a Psychiatrist or a Paediatrician to discuss further evaluation and/or treatment. how do i get my son assessed for adhd may be referred to an expert psychologist for a more in-depth assessment of your symptoms and to determine if there are co-occurring diagnoses or differential diagnoses. This includes assessing for comorbid disorders like anxiety and depression. This will allow your Psychologist to recommend an appropriate treatment plan.
Getting Started
Being diagnosed with ADHD can have a profound impact on your life and provide explanations for lingering problems and opening the door to effective treatment options. A good evaluation does require the expertise of trained healthcare professionals. The DIVA ADHD assessment is a standardized and comprehensive tool that can help to improve the accuracy of adult ADHD diagnosis by assessing symptoms across various life stages. It also identifies patterns of behavior that persist and helps distinguish between ADHD symptoms and other conditions like depression or anxiety.
In a DIVA ADHD evaluation, a clinician will use a structured interview in order to ask a series of questions regarding symptoms such as hyperactivity, inattention, and the tendency to be impulsive. The doctor evaluates the severity, frequency and duration of symptoms to determine how they affect the individual in different settings. This information can then be used to develop an accurate diagnosis.
The DIVA assessment has been verified against other diagnostic tools and exhibits high sensitivity when compared to the WURS-brief, CAA DID and the assessment of a psychiatrist. It also has a high degree of validity when assessing ADHD in five areas of daily functioning: work and education, relationships, home and family social interactions, leisure time and hobbies.
A well-validated DIVA assessment requires the participation of the individual being evaluated and their close family members and their friends. This will help to build trust and strengthen the therapeutic bond that is crucial for the success of the assessment.
A psychologist or psychiatrist with experience in the DIVA ADHD assessment can give an in-depth professional report. The report will detail the findings of the assessment and recommend a treatment plan that is based on the evidence.
If you suspect that you or a loved one may be suffering from ADHD, please contact us for an appointment. Our doctor Kate Schilling is trained in the DIVA ADHD assessment and can perform an assessment. She will refer you to an expert who will create a treatment strategy. Please be aware that the combination of medication and psychotherapy is the recommended treatment.