A study on attention deficit hyperactivity disorder symptoms of children aged 3 to 10 years old and its relationship with sleep

Abstract

Objective To investigate the incidence of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms among 3-10-year-old children and its relationship with sleep. Methods Taking gender, grade(junior in kindergarten to third grade), and region(urban and rural areas) as stratification variable, 1 535 children aged 3 to 10 years old were selected by random in six areas nationwide.ADHD Rating Scale-IV-Parent Version and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index were adopted to investigate ADHD symptoms and sleep of these children. Results 24.95% of the investigated children had ADHD symptoms. Boys scored higher than girls in all indicators(boys: Inattention(IA): (9.21±3.75), Hyperactivity-Impulsivity(HI): (8.62±3.87), Total: (17.82±7.01), girls: IA: (8.16±3.77), HI: (7.32±3.76), Total: (15.48±6.98)) while girls had higher incidence of ADHD symptoms than boys(girls: IA: 16.19%, HI: 27.02%, Total: 32.51%, boys: IA: 11.70%, HI: 8.19%, Total: 17.43%). Peak incidence occured in children aged 7-9(7 years old group: IA: 18.22%, HI: 21.93%, Total: 38.66%, 8 years old group: IA: 20.66%, HI: 23.25%, Total: 38.01%, 9 years old group: IA: 18.22%, HI: 33.78%, Total: 32.00%). Rural children had higher incidence of ADHD symptoms than urban children(rural children: IA: 18.37%, HI: 18.37%, Total: 29.48%, urban children: IA: 10.47%, HI: 15.12%, Total: 21.40%). Logistic regression results showed that sleep quality, sleep disorder and daily dysfunction can predict the incidence of ADHD symptoms to a certain degree. Conclusion The incidence of ADHD symptoms appear to be high in children evaluating by ADHD Rating Scale-IV-Parent Version. More attention should be paid to girls and rural children’s ADHD symptoms. 7-9 years old children have the highest incidence of ADHD symptoms. The more problems in daytime dysfunction, sleep disorders and bedtime, the more ADHD symptoms will be observed. Key words: Children; Attention deficit; Hyperactivity symptoms; Sleep