Slow Thinking - Sluggish Cognitive Tempo - New ADD?
A new "disease" has been creeping into the mental health literature - called Sluggish Cognitive Tempo - or SCT.
Characterized by lethargy, daydreaming, and slow mental processing, SCT is estimated to affect some 2 million children (roughly 6 million have ADHD). One researcher with strong ties to an ADHD drug maker says that SCT "has become the new attention disorder," according to the New York Times.
The concerns include no real diagnostic criteria, and the possibility of increased use of ADD drugs for this possible syndrome.
Peter Roy-Byrne, editor-in-chief of NEJM Journal Watch Psychiatry, expressed concern that SCT "will be used as a convenient easy diagnosis in lieu of evaluating things more carefully, especially from a psychological and behavioral perspective."
If you have not heard about it you certainly will. A Google search shows innumerable references.
I wonder if these new diagnoses are just excuses used to place children on drugs, and have some reservations about this syndrome at this time.
New York Times Article
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