Attention and brain circuits in children with anxiety and ADHD
Official title: Attention-Related Neural Circuitry in Pediatric Anxiety and ADHD
Funded at Washington University · NIH-11248751 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project looks at how attention-related brain systems work in children and teens with anxiety and/or ADHD to help guide better treatments.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Washington University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Saint Louis, United States) |
| Project start | January 1, 2023 |
| Project end | December 31, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $728,014 |
| NIH project number | 5R01MH131584-04 |
| Project ID | NIH-11248751 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Children and adolescents diagnosed with an anxiety disorder, ADHD, or both who are willing to complete attention tasks and noninvasive brain measurements are best suited for this work.
✕Less likely to help
Children without anxiety or ADHD, adults, or anyone unable to tolerate imaging or task procedures are unlikely to directly benefit from participating.
What this research studies
From a patient's perspective, researchers will invite children and adolescents with anxiety, ADHD, or both to take part in attention tests while their brain activity is measured using imaging and other noninvasive tools. Participants will complete tasks that present sudden sounds or images so the team can compare how attention shifts in different groups. The study will compare children with anxiety, children with ADHD, children who have both, and children without these conditions to find patterns linked to symptoms. The goal is to translate those brain patterns into ideas for new, more targeted therapies.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could point to specific brain attention circuits to target, helping develop treatments that reduce symptoms and improve functioning for affected children.
How similar studies have gone: Previous brain-imaging and attention-task studies have found links between attention patterns and symptoms, but using those findings to create effective new treatments is still an emerging effort.
Where this research is happening
-
Washington University
Saint Louis, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Sylvester, Chad Michael — Washington University
- Study coordinator: Sylvester, Chad Michael
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.