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Peer-reviewedCC BY 4.0Frontiers in Neuroscience

Familial risk for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and related behaviors in toddlerhood are preliminarily associated with altered frontoparietal development in infancy measured by functional near-infrared spectroscopy

  • Meghna Krishnamurthy1
  • Judith K. Morgan2,3
  • Hendrik Santosa4
  • Michelle A. Wilson5
  • Theodore J. Huppert6
  • Heather M. Joseph2,7
7 affiliations
  1. 1School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh
  2. 2Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh
  3. 3Department of Psychology, University of Pittsburgh
  4. 4Department of Radiology, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh
  5. 5Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center
  6. 6Department of Psychiatry, Stony Brook University
  7. 7Department of Pediatrics, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh
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Abstract

Introduction: Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a common childhood neurodevelopmental disorder associated with impairments across the lifespan. Children with ADHD have been found to have delayed brain maturation. These delays may be present and detectable with functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) as early as infancy for children at familial risk for ADHD. The present study examined longitudinal changes in functional connectivity among infants at high and low familial risk for ADHD, and their association with ADHD-related behaviors in toddlerhood.

Methods: Participants were 44 infants, half at high familial risk for ADHD due to parental ADHD, assessed at 8-10 months and 12-14 months of age. fNIRS was used to measure hemodynamic activation in frontal and parietal regions during a low cognitive load task of attention. In toddlerhood, 18-30 months of age, parents rated ADHD-related behaviors using the Child Behavior Checklist.

Results: Across the sample, longitudinal fNIRS analyses revealed increased frontal connectivity with a notable leftward shift between timepoints. High-risk children showed greater increases in frontoparietal connectivity relative to low-risk peers, with divergent trajectories observed in left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and right parietal connectivity. Greater parent-reported attention symptoms were broadly associated with increased frontoparietal connectivity.

Discussion: Although most findings did not survive corrections for multiple comparisons, these findings suggest that familial ADHD risk and early ADHD-related behaviors may be associated with atypical frontoparietal and frontal network development across the first year of life, highlighting the potential of fNIRS as a tool for identifying early neural markers of ADHD risk that could be used to identify which infants could benefit from early preventative interventions.

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Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{krishnamurthy2026familial,
  title = {{Familial risk for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and related behaviors in toddlerhood are preliminarily associated with altered frontoparietal development in infancy measured by functional near-infrared spectroscopy}},
  author = {Meghna Krishnamurthy and Judith K. Morgan and Hendrik Santosa and Michelle A. Wilson and Theodore J. Huppert and Heather M. Joseph},
  journal = {Frontiers in Neuroscience},
  year = {2026},
  month = oct,
  doi = {10.3389/fnins.2026.1919928},
  url = {https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnins.2026.1919928/full},
  note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - Familial risk for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and related behaviors in toddlerhood are preliminarily associated with altered frontoparietal development in infancy measured by functional near-infrared spectroscopy
AU  - Meghna Krishnamurthy
AU  - Judith K. Morgan
AU  - Hendrik Santosa
AU  - Michelle A. Wilson
AU  - Theodore J. Huppert
AU  - Heather M. Joseph
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/20
JO  - Frontiers in Neuroscience
DO  - 10.3389/fnins.2026.1919928
UR  - https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnins.2026.1919928/full
AB  - Introduction: Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a common childhood neurodevelopmental disorder associated with impairments across the lifespan. Children with ADHD have been found to have delayed brain maturation. These delays may be present and detectable with functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) as early as infancy for children at familial risk for ADHD. The present study examined longitudinal changes in functional connectivity among infants at high and low familial risk for ADHD, and their association with ADHD-related behaviors in toddlerhood.  Methods: Participants were 44 infants, half at high familial risk for ADHD due to parental ADHD, assessed at 8-10 months and 12-14 months of age. fNIRS was used to measure hemodynamic activation in frontal and parietal regions during a low cognitive load task of attention. In toddlerhood, 18-30 months of age, parents rated ADHD-related behaviors using the Child Behavior Checklist.  Results: Across the sample, longitudinal fNIRS analyses revealed increased frontal connectivity with a notable leftward shift between timepoints. High-risk children showed greater increases in frontoparietal connectivity relative to low-risk peers, with divergent trajectories observed in left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and right parietal connectivity. Greater parent-reported attention symptoms were broadly associated with increased frontoparietal connectivity.  Discussion: Although most findings did not survive corrections for multiple comparisons, these findings suggest that familial ADHD risk and early ADHD-related behaviors may be associated with atypical frontoparietal and frontal network development across the first year of life, highlighting the potential of fNIRS as a tool for identifying early neural markers of ADHD risk that could be used to identify which infants could benefit from early preventative interventions.
SN  - 1662-453X
SN  - 1662-4548
ER  -