Brain imaging may help identify children at risk for mood and attentional disorders, suggests a study in JAMA Psychiatry. Researchers performed resting-state fMRI scans on 94 7-year-olds who had no psychiatric diagnosis and followed them for four years. The researchers found that the children with weaker connectivity between the subgenual anterior cingulate cortex and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex were more likely to develop anxiety or depression symptoms by age 11. Those with stronger connectivity between the medial prefrontal cortex and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex were more likely to develop symptoms of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder by age 11. (Monitor on Psychology)

Children with weaker brain connectivity at age 7 were more likely to develop anxiety or depression by age 11.

Susie Bean Gives