ADHD 'can be diagnosed in minutes'

During the study, researchers asked 64 four- to six-year-olds to follow the movement of a spot of light on a computer screen. They found that children with ADHD displayed erratic patterns of eye movement.

The research team claim this is the world's first biological test for the disorder, which affects around 5 per cent of school-age children. Current diagnosis of ADHD is a lengthy process, using techniques such as psychiatric assessment and questionnaires.

However, some experts have questioned whether a single test lasting just ten minutes can diagnose the disorder correctly.

Robin Balbernie, consultant child psychotherapist in Gloucestershire, said, 'I can well imagine that children with ADHD will display erratic eye movements. But the risk is that many other things could cause erratic eye movements, and so not all children with these movements will necessarily have ADHD. For example, a child who has suffered abuse, neglect or trauma may be hyper-vigilant and move their eyes around more. I'd be awfully worried that people would say the test proves a child has ADHD when in fact they could be describing something else, like post-traumatic stress disorder.'