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. 2010 May 30;177(3):299-304.
doi: 10.1016/j.psychres.2009.12.010.

How persistent is ADHD? A controlled 10-year follow-up study of boys with ADHD

Joseph Biederman  1 , Carter R Petty, Maggie Evans, Jacqueline Small, Stephen V Faraone
Affiliations

How persistent is ADHD? A controlled 10-year follow-up study of boys with ADHD

Joseph Biederman et al. Psychiatry Res. .

Abstract

The main aim of this study was to examine the age-dependent persistence of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in boys transitioning from adolescence into early adulthood attending to different definitions of persistence. We conducted a 10-year follow-up study (mean follow-up time=11 years) of 110 boys with ADHD and 105 non-ADHD controls. Both groups were 6-17 years of age at ascertainment. ADHD was considered persistent at follow-up if subjects met full or subthreshold (more than half of the symptoms required for a full diagnosis) Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fourth edition, (DSM-IV) diagnostic criteria, failed to attain functional remission (Global Assessment of Functioning, GAF score < or =60) or were receiving treatment for ADHD. While 65% of children with ADHD no longer met full DSM-IV criteria for ADHD at the 10-year follow-up, 78% of subjects met at least one of our definitions of persistence. Persistence as described above was associated with more psychiatric co-morbidity, more familiality with mood disorders and higher levels of educational and interpersonal impairments than controls. This 10-year longitudinal follow-up study shows that the majority of ADHD boys experience persistent symptoms and functional impairments into early adulthood. Persistence of ADHD is associated with greater psychiatric comorbidity, familiality and functional impairments.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of Interest: Dr. Joseph Biederman is currently receiving research support from the following sources: Alza, AstraZeneca, Bristol Myers Squibb, Eli Lilly and Co., Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc., McNeil, Merck, Organon, Otsuka, Shire, NIMH, and NICHD

In previous years, Dr. Joseph Biederman received research support, consultation fees, or speaker’s fees for/from the following additional sources: Abbott, AstraZeneca, Celltech, Cephalon, Eli Lilly and Co., Esai, Forest, Glaxo, Gliatech, Janssen, McNeil, NARSAD, NIDA, New River, Novartis, Noven, Neurosearch, Pfizer, Pharmacia, The Prechter Foundation, Shire, The Stanley Foundation, UCB Pharma, Inc. and Wyeth.

Mr. Carter Petty reports no competing interests.

Ms. Maggie Evans reports no competing interests.

Ms. Jacqueline Small reports no competing interests.

In the past year, Dr. Stephen Faraone has received consulting fees and has been on Advisory Boards for Eli Lilly and Shire and has received research support from Eli Lilly, Pfizer, Shire and the National Institutes of Health. In the past two years, Dr. Faraone has received consulting fees or has been on Advisory Boards or has been a speaker for the following sources: Shire and Eli Lilly. In the past two years he has received research support from Eli Lilly, Shire, Pfizer and the National Institutes of Health.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Age-specific prevalence of persistence of ADHD at the 10-year follow-up by definition of persistence and symptom type (N=103). The prevalence of persistence varied considerably depending on the definition used. Persistence significantly decreased with age for ADHD and inattentive symptoms but not hyperactive/impulsive symptoms.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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