ADHD Research

The Study

Dr. Tutty co-authored this randomized controlled trial with pediatrician Harlan Gephart, MD. It was carried out in a pediatric setting with children who had just been diagnosed with ADHD, and it focused on improving their behavioral and social skill functioning, not only their attention.

In Dr. Tutty's own summary, the trial showed that stimulant medication alone is not sufficient for treating childhood ADHD. For details of the methods and results, see the published abstract.

Why It Matters for Your Child

Medication can help many children with ADHD, and decisions about it belong with your child's doctor. But children with ADHD also have to manage friendships, follow classroom routines and handle frustration, and those skills don't come in a pill. That's why Dr. Tutty's reports go beyond the diagnosis to cover:

• Behavior strategies that parents can use at home
• Social skills and how they show up at school
• Classroom accommodations matched to the test results
• Guidance for the pediatrician or therapist

Working With Pediatricians

Because this research took place inside a pediatric practice, Dr. Tutty has a working understanding of how ADHD care actually happens in primary care. More on that for physicians on the pediatrician page.

Other Published Research

Dr. Tutty also worked on randomized trials of telephone-based care for depression with principal investigator Greg Simon, MD, beginning in 2000, part of the early telehealth movement. As a National Health Scholar, he has more than 20 years of teaching, research and publishing in clinical psychology.

• Telephone psychotherapy and telephone care management for primary care patients starting antidepressant treatment: a randomized controlled trialSimon GE, Ludman EJ, Tutty S, Operskalski B, Von Korff M. JAMA. 2004;292(8):935–942.
• Enhancing behavioral and social skill functioning in children newly diagnosed with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder in a pediatric settingTutty S, Gephart H, Wurzbacher K. Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics. 2003;24(1):51–57.
• A randomized trial of telephone psychotherapy and pharmacotherapy for depression: continuation and durability of effectsLudman EJ, Simon GE, Tutty S, Von Korff M. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology. 2007;75(2):257–266.
• Feasibility and acceptability of a telephone psychotherapy program for depressed adults treated in primary careTutty S, Ludman EJ, Simon G. General Hospital Psychiatry. 2005;27(6):400–410.
• Evaluating the effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral teletherapy in depressed adultsTutty S, Spangler DL, Poppleton LE, Ludman EJ, Simon GE. Behavior Therapy. 2010;41(2):229–236.

Titles link to the abstracts on PubMed. See also publications at Aspyre Psychology.