‘When Autism and ADHD Overlap’

Dr Beth Johnson, a postdoctoral researcher at Monash University, leading an ambitious research programme to transform how we understand and diagnose ADHD.

Dr Johnson (Turner Institute for Brain and Mental Health, Monash University) leads the Monash ADHD/Autism Genetics and Neurodevelopment (MAGNET) project – which combines cutting edge family genetic analysis techniques with comprehensive neurocognitive profiling – which will help to transform how ADHD is diagnosed and treated. She is reconceptualising how attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are diagnosed, reduce time to diagnosis, and improve outcomes for kids.

Through her experience in both wet labs and clinical research, Beth transitioned into underlying genetic influences on cognitive traits such as attention, impulse control, working memory and error processing often seen in neurodevelopmental disorders such as ADHD

Even as a young child Beth was deeply fascinated by how the brain works. She is now excited to be using cutting edge neuroscience, genetics and clinical research to help families who have kids with ADHD.

In this presentation Dr Johnson will talk about when ADHD and Autism overlap, looking into updates on the latest research.

Dr Johnson will discuss what co-occurring ASD-ADHD “looks like” in a clinical setting, current diagnostic practices, and how the landscape for diagnosis of these conditions will likely change in the coming decades. She will present the latest research from the MAGNET Project and other researchers internationally regarding how and why autism and ADHD often co-occur, including clinical, neurocognitive and genetic research, current treatments and future outlooks for diagnosis, treatments and targeted support.