Development of ICF Core Sets to standardize assessment of functioning and impairment in ADHD: the path ahead

Abstract

In the study of health and quality of life in attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), it is of paramount importance to include assessment of functioning. The International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) provides a comprehensive, universally accepted framework for the description of functioning in relation to health conditions. In this paper, the authors outline the process to develop ICF Core Sets for ADHD. ICF Core Sets are subgroups of ICF categories selected to capture the aspects of functioning that are most likely to be affected in specific disorders. The ICF categories that will be included in the ICF Core Sets for ADHD will be determined at an ICF Core Set Consensus Conference, wherein evidence from four preliminary studies (a systematic review, an expert survey, a patient and caregiver qualitative study, and a clinical cross-sectional study) will be integrated. Comprehensive and Brief ICF Core Sets for ADHD will be developed with the goal of providing useful standards for research and clinical practice, and to generate a common language for the description of functioning in ADHD in different areas of life and across the lifespan.

Fig. 1

The integrative biopsychosocial model of functioning, disability and health

Fig. 2

Hierarchical structure of the ICF. ICF categories each have a unique code, which is built up of a prefix and a numeric code. Codes included in the different levels are shown for each component. The prefix is a letter indicating the component of which the category is a part: b body functions, s body structures, d activities and participation, and e environmental factors. The numeric code starts with the first level or chapter number (one digit), followed by the second level (two digits), and the third and fourth level (one digit each)

Fig. 3

ICF Core Set for ADHD development process