DIVA ADHD - Improving Adult ADHD Diagnosis
DIVA is an interview that is semistructured designed to improve ADHD assessment in adults. This study will evaluate the criterion validity of DIVA 2.0 and its concurrent 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.
Signs and symptoms
The symptoms of ADD/ADHD affect every aspect of our lives from relationships to advancement in our careers and the everyday tasks we have to perform. It is important that our ADHD assessment takes a holistic approach, looking at how the symptoms impact all aspects of our lives. Dr. Schilling will begin by evaluating your symptoms and medical history. She will then conduct a DIVA 5 assessment. This is a semi-structured, interview which evaluates both the main symptoms and the impact of ADD/ADHD your life.
The DIVA is an interviewing instrument designed by psychotherapists and psychiatrists to assess symptoms of adult ADHD. It has been found to be extremely sensitive and precise. It is highly effective at identifying people suffering from the disorder. It can increase awareness and help diagnose adult ADHD in Korea because it is the only validated semistructured diagnostic test available in the country.
A trained clinician, usually a psychiatrist, will ask questions to determine the primary symptoms of ADHD. These include hyperactivity, inattention and an impulsive nature. The psychologist will also look at the background of the person and their childhood experiences and their impact on their current behaviours. This is because the signs of ADHD don't just emerge in a flash, they manifest through the teenage years, and into adulthood.
The DIVA can efficiently identify people suffering from ADHD because it takes into consideration both the DSM-IV criteria for ADHD in childhood and adulthood and how these symptoms have impacted the individual's daily functioning in five different areas of life: education, work, family/partner relations and leisure time/social activities, and self-esteem and self-confidence. In comparison, other screening tools such as the WURS-brief, which was compared to CAADID, showed poor accuracy and negative predictive values.
Diagnosis
In order to determine the presence of ADHD in adults, it is important to assess the symptoms and their history. This can be done through conducting a thorough interview about childhood symptoms and a neurocognitive assessment. It is also important to look at the effects of the symptoms on the individual's life and work. This can be evaluated using a structured interview, the DIVA and, in some cases, asking for information from relatives and friends.
The DIVA interview is a semistructured interview first designed for adults in the Netherlands. It has been revised for use in other countries, including Korea. This study looked at the validity of the Korean version of DIVA (DIVA-5) in an adult clinical sample with ADHD.
During the DIVA, the clinician asks about the presence of ADHD symptoms in childhood and into adulthood, the age at which symptoms first manifest, as well as the severity of impairment resulting from these symptoms. The clinician will also collect a variety of sociodemographic information and ask about any psychiatric co-morbidity.
Patients were screened for psychiatric comorbidity using the MINI-S plus version 5.0.0 as well as the Brief Alcohol Related Neuropsychological Impairment Screening Instrument (BEARNI), and the Frontal Assessment Battery (FAB). Two psychiatrists who are experienced used the structured diagnostic interview DIVA-5 in order to establish a diagnosis of ADHD. They assessed symptoms throughout adulthood and childhood and determined the length 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 has good concurrent validity when compared with the WURS scale, and has fair validity when compared with three self-report ratings instruments that include the ASRS (self-report rating), FAB (self-report rating), 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 diagnostic accuracy of the DIVA-5 was found to be comparable with the accuracy of a diagnosis formulated by two renowned psychiatrists. This was in line with the sensitivity and specificity of previous screening tools like the ASRS and the WURS.
Treatment
If you have an undiagnosed ADHD, it can significantly affect your life. It can impact your relationships, academic progress, and work. It can also affect how you organize your day-to-day life. A diagnosis can help you determine your strengths and weaknesses as well as provide treatments that can improve your symptoms and coping mechanisms.
A licensed clinician, usually psychologist or psychiatrist will conduct a structured discussion with you about your symptoms currently using the DIVA-5 assessment tool. It will include standardised questions regarding your levels of hyperactivity, inattention, and impulsivity. It will also look into your personal history including childhood experiences to get the full picture of your symptoms.
This approach is crucial to ensure a thorough diagnosis of adult ADHD. It also helps us identify the root cause of your symptoms, which helps inform your treatment.
The DIVA assessment can be used to diagnose adult ADHD with high specificity and sensitivity. It has also been demonstrated to be reliable in determining the validity of criterion when compared to self-report rating scales like the Wender Utah Rating Scale (WURS) and the ADHD-Rating Scale. It has good consistency with these scales, and has good validity with Sheehan's Dysfunction Inventory.
The DIVA evaluation, in contrast to more traditional methods of assessing ADHD in adulthood it focuses on identifying signs that manifest in childhood and into adulthood. This increases the accuracy of diagnoses and allows a more accurate comparison of the sociodemographic characteristics of the two groups. The DIVA evaluation also provides an opportunity to look at the effects of co-occurring disorders on appearance of ADHD symptoms.
If your Psychologist is not able to prescribe treatment, it might be necessary to schedule an appointment with a pediatrician or Psychiatrist to further assess and/or therapy. They can then refer you to an expert Psychologist for more in-depth analysis of your symptoms and to determine if there are any differential or co-occurring diagnoses. This includes assessing for co-occurring conditions such as depression and anxiety. This will allow your Psychologist to recommend an appropriate treatment plan.
Getting Started
Getting diagnosed with ADHD can have a profound impact on your life providing explanations for long-standing difficulties and opening doors to effective treatment options. A good evaluation does require the expertise of trained healthcare professionals. The DIVA ADHD assessment, a structured and comprehensive tool, can help to improve the adult ADHD diagnosis accuracy by analyzing symptoms across different stages of life. It also identifies persistent patterns of behavior and differentiates between ADHD symptoms and other conditions that may present similar symptoms for adults, such as anxiety or depression.
In a DIVA ADHD evaluation, a practitioner will conduct a structured interview in order to ask a series of questions regarding symptoms such as hyperactivity, inattention and an impulsiveness. The clinician assesses the frequency, severity and duration of these symptoms to determine how they impact the individual's life and how they function in a variety of environments. This information can be used to determine an accurate diagnosis.
The DIVA test is validated in comparison to other diagnostic tools. It has high sensitivity when compared to CAA-DIDs, WURS-briefs, and psychiatrist's tests. It also has a high degree of validity when assessing ADHD in five areas of daily functioning such as education and work, relationships home and family social connections, free time and hobby.
A well-validated DIVA assessment requires the participation of the individual being assessed as well as their closest family members and friends. This will help build trust and a therapeutic bond that will be important for the success of the evaluation.
adhd assessment in uk or psychiatrist who has been skilled in the use of the DIVA ADHD assessment will be able to provide a detailed report. The report will detail the findings of the test and recommend a treatment plan that is based upon evidence.
Please contact us to schedule an appointment if you suspect you or someone you love might be suffering from ADHD. Our doctor Kate Schilling has been trained in the use of DIVA ADHD assessments and is able to provide a comprehensive evaluation. She can then make a referral to a specialist to create an effective treatment plan. Be aware that a combination of medication and psychotherapy is the most effective treatment.