Document Type : Original Article
Authors
- . Gurpreet Kaur Chawla
- . Ruchi Juyal 1
- . Deep Shikha 1
- . Jayanti Semwal 1
- . Shailesh Tripathi 2
- . Sudip Bhattacharya 1
1 Department of Community Medicine, Himalayan Institute of Medical Sciences, Swami Rama Himalayan University, Dehradun, Uttarakhand, India
2 Department of Health, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a considerably common
childhood‑onset neurodevelopmental disorder, often associated with socio‑behavioral and academic
difficulties. There is an increased risk for development of a range of future problems such as
psychiatric disorders, difficulties in employment, and relationships. The aim of this study was to know
the prevalence and determinants of ADHD among primary school children in district Dehradun and
to assess the learning difficulties and classroom behavior in these students.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this cross‑sectional study, overall, 228 students (aged 6–12 years)
studying in a primary school were assessed for ADHD after seeking the written informed consent from
their parents. The data were analyzed using Excel sheet and SPSS software (22.0 version). For all
qualitative measures, frequency and percentages were calculated, and for quantitative measures,
mean and standard deviation were calculated. For analysis of categorical values, Chi‑square test
was used. P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.
RESULTS: The prevalence of ADHD was found to be 11.8% based on the teacher tool only and
1.75% based on the parent and teacher tools combined. ADHD was found to be significantly more
in males. Inattention was the most prevalent subtype of ADHD, and children screened positive for
ADHD had significant learning difficulties at various levels.
CONCLUSION: The possibility of ADHD in students with academic difficulties should not be ignored
as children with ADHD usually face significant problems at school such as learning difficulties and
have been shown to be at increased risk for a broad range of negative outcomes. Early identification
and treatment of ADHD can significantly reduce the rates of some of these poor outcomes. Screening
these children in the early years will help the parents, children, teachers, and community at large.
Keywords
- Polanczyk GV, Salum GA, Sugaya LS, Caye A, Rohde LA. Annual
research review: A meta‑analysis of the worldwide prevalence
of mental disorders in children and adolescents. J Child Psychol
Psychiatry 2015;56:345‑65.
2. Willcutt EG. The prevalence of DSM‑IV attention‑deficit/
hyperactivity disorder: Ameta‑analytic review. Neurotherapeutics
2012;9:490‑9.
3. Barry TD, Sturner RA, Seymour K, Howard BH, McGoron L,
Bergmann P, et al. School‑based screening to identify children
at risk for attention‑deficit/hyperactivity disorder: Barriers and
implications. Child Health Care 2016;45:241‑65.
4. Epstein JN, Loren RE. Changes in the definition of ADHD
in DSM‑5: Subtle but important. Neuropsychiatry (London)
2013;3:455‑8.
5. GizerIR, Ficks C, Waldman ID. Candidate gene studies of ADHD:
A meta‑analytic review. Hum Genet 2009;126:51‑90.
6. Curatolo P, D’Agati E, Moavero R. The neurobiological basis of
ADHD. Ital J Pediatr 2010;36:79.
7. Amiri S, Malek A, Sadegfard M, Abdi S. Pregnancy‑related
maternal risk factors of attention‑deficit hyperactivity disorder:
A case‑control study. ISRN Pediatr 2012;2012:458064.
8. Galéra C, Pingault JB, Michel G, Bouvard MP, Melchior M,
Falissard B, et al. Clinical and social factors associated
with attention‑deficit hyperactivity disorder medication
use: Population‑based longitudinal study. Br J Psychiatry
2014;205:291‑7. Available from: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/
pubmed/25104834. [Last accessed on 2019 Oct 26]. - 9. Feiz P, Emamipour S. A survey on prevalence rate of
attention‑deficit hyperactivity disorder among elementary
school students (6‑7 years old) in Tehran. Procedia‑Soc Behav Sci
2013;84:1732‑5. [doi: 10.1016/j.sbspro. 2013.07.022].
10. Available from: https://www.nichq.org/sites/default/files/
resource‑file/NICHQ_Vanderbilt_Assessment_Scales.pdf. [Last
accessed on 2019 Oct 26].
11. Brown RT, Freeman WS, Perrin JM, Stein MT, Amler RW,
Feldman HM, et al. Prevalence and assessment of attention‑deficit/
hyperactivity disorder in primary care settings. Pediatrics
2001;107:E43.
12. Venkata JA, Panicker AS. Prevalence of attention deficit
hyperactivity disorder in primary school children. Indian J
Psychiatry 2013;55:338‑42.
13. HsR, As G, Pandit LV. Prevalence of attention deficit hyperactivity
disorder in school going children aged between 5‑12 years in
Bengaluru. Curr Pediatr Res 2017;21:321‑6.
14. Mannapur R, Munirathnam G, Hyarada M, Saranappa S,
Bylagoudar S. Prevalence of attention deficit hyperactivity
disorder among urban school children. Int J Contemp Pediatr
2016;3:240‑2.
15. Yewatkar DV, Pande DP, Bangde LA, Joshi T. Prevalence of
attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in an urban school of a
developing country. Int J Res Med Sci 2015;3:3759‑62.
16. Danielson ML, Bitsko RH, Ghandour RM, Holbrook JR,
Kogan MD, Blumberg SJ. Prevalence of parent‑reported
ADHD diagnosis and associated treatment Among U.S.
children and adolescents, 2016. J Clin Child Adolesc Psychol
2018;47:199‑212.
17. Hebrani P, Abdolahian E, Behdani F, Vosoogh I, Javanbakht A.
The prevalence of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in
preschool‑age children in Mashhad, north‑East of Iran. Arch Iran
Med 2007;10:147‑51. Available from: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.
gov/pubmed/17367214. [Last accessed on 2019 Oct 26].
18. Hamidzadeh A, Kharatha M, Bazghaleh M, Basirinejad H,
Aghdam NF, Ebrahimi H. The prevalence of attention-deficit
hyperactivity disorder and its related risk factors among children
at elementary school in Shahroud. J Educ Health Promot.
2021;10:341.
19. Polanczyk G, de Lima MS, Horta BL, Biederman J, Rohde LA.
The worldwide prevalence of ADHD: A systematic review and
metaregression analysis. Am J Psychiatry 2007;164:942‑8.
20. Ramtekkar UP, Reiersen AM, Todorov AA, Todd RD. Sex and age
differences in attention‑deficit/hyperactivity disorder symptoms
and diagnoses: Implications for DSM‑V and ICD‑11. J Am Acad
Child Adolesc Psychiatry 2010;49:217‑28.e1.
21. Vadsaria K, Jabbar A, Azam I, Rizvi S, Haider G, Naqvi, H.
Coping Styles and Depression among Patients with Solid Organ
Cancers Attending Two Tertiary Care Hospitals of Karachi: A
Cross Sectional Study. Open Journal of Epidemiology, 2017;7:
69-83.
22. Willcutt EG. The prevalence of DSM‑IV ADHD: A meta‑analytic
review. Neurotherapeutics 2012;9:490‑9. Available from: http://
link.springer.com/article/100.1007/s13311‑012‑0135‑8/fulltext.
html. [Last accessed on 2019 Oct 26].
23. Biederman J, Mick E, Faraone SV, Braaten E, Doyle A, Spencer T,
et al. Influence of gender on attention deficit hyperactivity disorder
in. Am J Psychiatry 2002;159:36‑42.
24. Loe IM, Feldman HM. Academic and educational outcomes of
children with ADHD. J Pediatric Psychol 2007;32:643‑54.
)