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. 2022 Nov;26(13):1685-1697.
doi: 10.1177/10870547221099961. Epub 2022 May 22.

State-Level Estimates of the Prevalence of Parent-Reported ADHD Diagnosis and Treatment Among U.S. Children and Adolescents, 2016 to 2019

Melissa L Danielson  1 , Joseph R Holbrook  1 , Rebecca H Bitsko  1 , Kimberly Newsome  1 , Sana N Charania  1 , Russell F McCord  2 , Michael D Kogan  3 , Stephen J Blumberg  4
Affiliations

State-Level Estimates of the Prevalence of Parent-Reported ADHD Diagnosis and Treatment Among U.S. Children and Adolescents, 2016 to 2019

Melissa L Danielson et al. J Atten Disord. 2022 Nov.

Abstract

Objective: To provide state-level estimates of diagnosed ADHD and associated treatment among children in the United States in 2016 to 2019.

Method: This study used the National Survey of Children's Health to produce national and state-level estimates of lifetime diagnosis and current ADHD among all children aged 3 to 17 years (n=114,476), and national and state-level estimates of medication and behavioral treatment use among children with current ADHD.

Results: The state-level estimates of diagnosed ADHD ranged from 6.1% to 16.3%. Among children with current ADHD, state-level estimates of ADHD medication usage ranged from 37.8% to 81.4%, and state-level estimates of behavioral treatment ranged from 38.8% to 61.8%.

Conclusion: There was substantial state-level variation for indicators of ADHD diagnosis and associated treatment. These state-level results can be used by policymakers, public health practitioners, health care providers, and other stakeholders to help address the service needs of children with ADHD in their states.

Keywords: ADHD; behavior therapy; children; diagnosis; medication.

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Figures

Figure 1:
Figure 1:
Weighted Prevalence Estimates of Parent-Reported Ever Diagnosed Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) among Children/Adolescents Aged 3–17 Years by State, National Survey of Children’s Health, 2016–2019 * Indicates that state estimate has a statistically significant difference (p<0.05) from the estimate for the rest of the country
Figure 2:
Figure 2:
Weighted Prevalence Estimates of Parent-Reported Current Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) among Children/Adolescents Aged 3–17 Years by State, National Survey of Children’s Health, 2016–2019 * Indicates that state estimate has a statistically significant difference (p<0.05) from the estimate for the rest of the country
Figure 3:
Figure 3:
Weighted Prevalence Estimates of Parent-Reported Current Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) Medication Treatment among Children/Adolescents Aged 3–17 Years with Current ADHD by State, National Survey of Children’s Health, 2016–2019 * Indicates that state estimate has a statistically significant difference (p<0.05) from the estimate for the rest of the country
Figure 4:
Figure 4:
Weighted Prevalence Estimates of Parent-Reported Receipt of Behavioral Treatment for Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in the Past Year among Children/Adolescents Aged 3–17 Years with Current ADHD by State, National Survey of Children’s Health, 2016–2019 * Indicates that state estimate has a statistically significant difference (p<0.05) from the estimate for the rest of the country
Figure 5:
Figure 5:
Percentage* of Children/Adolescents Aged 3–17 Years with Current Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) Who Are Receiving ADHD Medication and/or Behavioral Treatment for ADHD, National Survey of Children’s Health, 2016–2019 * States are ordered from lowest to highest based on the percentage of children with current ADHD receiving ADHD medication. Note: Shaded area represents 95% confidence interval for treatment point estimates by state.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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