ADHD in childhood lingers into adulthood

Around a third of all children who are diagnosed with having attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder continue to have it when they reach adulthood, with more than 50 percent also having some other form of psychiatric disorder, according to one of the biggest studies ever conducted on the subject.

 

Around 20 percent of children with ADHD continue to have the condition at the age of 27, claims the study, which was published in the April edition of Pediatrics. Around 57 percent of those diagnosed with the disorder during their childhood also have had a minimum of one other form of psychiatric disorder, in comparison with 35 percent in a group that did not suffer from ADHD as children.

The most common psychiatric problems in adults who were diagnosed with ADHD as children are alcohol abuse/dependence, antisocial personality disorders, some other form of substance abuse/dependence, anxiety disorders and serious depression.