Prevalence Of ADHD Symptoms Research Articles

S01-04 Adult ADHD: an under-diagnosed condition

ADHD is a neurodevelopmental disorder that impairs executive functions, leads to maladaptive behavior and, in about 50%, has a livelong persistence. Nevertheless, adult ADHD is a very much under-diagnosed condition.We conducted a study aimed to identify ADHD in a special population of adults. Questionnaires were applied to the parents of children attending CADIn, a Clinical Centre for Developmental Disorders for evaluation or intervention (48% of their children were diagnosed as having ADHD and 22% were diagnosed as having Pervasive Developmental Disorder). We expected a higher incidence of ADHD in this population as well as a better awareness for the condition.We used the Adult ADHD Self-report Scale (ASRS-v1.1) and the questionnaires contained questions concerning degree of impairment, persistence of symptoms and comorbid psychiatric conditions. 114 parents were inquired, 29% fathers, 68% mothers 3% missed gender. 17% of the parents quoted above the cut-off-point for the ASRS-v1.1 screener and amongst those, 45% referred the ADHD symptoms as causing them severe impairment. Only 3 subjects had been previously diagnosed as ADHD. The prevalence of ADHD symptoms was similar for males and females. 56% of the ADHD population was diagnosed formerly as suffering from psychiatric disorder, compared to 35% of the total population. The more common diagnoses were depression (45%) and anxiety (30%).We conclude that ADHD is much under-diagnosed in the adult population. Considering its high heritability, a closer evaluation of the parents of children diagnosed with ADHD is suggested.

Influence of Attention‐Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Symptoms on Methadone Treatment Outcome

A review of 687 consecutive admissions to a Midwestern methadone maintenance program was undertaken to establish the prevalence of ADHD symptoms and their association with treatment outcome. Of the 687 admissions, 396 (58%) patients self-reported experiencing one or more ADHD symptoms during the two weeks prior to admission, and 131 (19%) patients reported ADHD symptoms that significantly interfered with functioning in daily activities. At nine months post-admission, the patients who reported significant symptoms of ADHD were able to reduce their drug use but were less likely to have achieved abstinence than those who did not report significant symptoms (p < or = 0.001). The authors discuss the importance of screening for ADHD symptoms in methadone treatment programs and propose interventions believed helpful in improving management of ADHD symptoms and improving outcome.

ADHD-related behavior among non-referred children: parents' ratings of DSM-III-R symptoms.

To identify the prevalence of ADHD symptoms among non-referred children, parents' ratings based on DSM-III-R criteria for ADHD were obtained for 1022 metropolitan children of ages 4 to 12. The prevalence rates of fourteen behavior items were markedly lower for boys of ages 10-12 than of ages 7-9, and for girls of ages 7-9 than of ages 4-6. 41.5% of the 7.7% subjects meeting ADHD criteria had been identified by their teachers as having problems symptomatic of ADHD, and one third had been reported by their parents as having conduct problems and emotional difficulties. A factor analysis revealed three factors: inattention; hyperactivity; and excessive verbal activities.