| Title |
Sex differences in predicting ADHD clinical diagnosis and pharmacological treatment
|
|---|---|
| Published in |
European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, August 2018
|
| DOI | 10.1007/s00787-018-1211-3 |
| Pubmed ID | |
| Authors |
Florence D. Mowlem, Mina A. Rosenqvist, Joanna Martin, Paul Lichtenstein, Philip Asherson, Henrik Larsson |
| Abstract |
In youth, ADHD is more commonly diagnosed in males than females, but higher male-to-female ratios are found in clinical versus population-based samples, suggesting a sex bias in the process of receiving a clinical diagnosis of ADHD. This study investigated sex differences in the severity and presentation of ADHD symptoms, conduct problems, and learning problems in males and females with and without clinically diagnosed ADHD. We then investigated whether the predictive associations of these symptom domains on being diagnosed and treated for ADHD differed in males and females. Parents of 19,804 twins (50.64% male) from the Swedish population completed dimensional assessments of ADHD symptoms and co-occurring traits (conduct and learning problems) when children were aged 9 years. Children from this population sample were linked to Patient Register data on clinical ADHD diagnosis and medication prescriptions. At the population level, males had higher scores for all symptom domains (inattention, hyperactivity/impulsivity, conduct, and learning problems) compared to females, but similar severity was seen in clinically diagnosed males and females. Symptom severity for all domains increased the likelihood of receiving an ADHD diagnosis in both males and females. Prediction analyses revealed significant sex-by-symptom interactions on diagnostic and treatment status for hyperactivity/impulsivity and conduct problems. In females, these behaviours were stronger predictors of clinical diagnosis (hyperactivity/impulsivity: OR 1.08, 95% CI 1.01, 1.15; conduct: OR 1.43, 95% CI 1.09, 1.87), and prescription of pharmacological treatment (hyperactivity/impulsivity: OR 1.24, 95% CI 1.02, 1.50; conduct: OR 2.20, 95% CI 1.05, 4.63). Females with ADHD may be more easily missed in the ADHD diagnostic process and less likely to be prescribed medication unless they have prominent externalising problems. |
X Demographics
The data shown below were collected from the profiles of 48 X users who shared this research output. Click here to find out more about how the information was compiled.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | 23 | 48% |
| Australia | 2 | 4% |
| United States | 2 | 4% |
| Netherlands | 2 | 4% |
| Canada | 1 | 2% |
| United Arab Emirates | 1 | 2% |
| Norway | 1 | 2% |
| Unknown | 16 | 33% |
Demographic breakdown
| Type | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Members of the public | 30 | 63% |
| Scientists | 11 | 23% |
| Practitioners (doctors, other healthcare professionals) | 6 | 13% |
| Science communicators (journalists, bloggers, editors) | 1 | 2% |
Mendeley readers
The data shown below were compiled from readership statistics for 379 Mendeley readers of this research output. Click here to see the associated Mendeley record.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Unknown | 379 | 100% |
Demographic breakdown
| Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Student > Bachelor | 62 | 16% |
| Student > Master | 38 | 10% |
| Student > Ph. D. Student | 31 | 8% |
| Researcher | 24 | 6% |
| Student > Doctoral Student | 16 | 4% |
| Other | 46 | 12% |
| Unknown | 162 | 43% |
| Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Psychology | 68 | 18% |
| Medicine and Dentistry | 30 | 8% |
| Neuroscience | 30 | 8% |
| Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology | 10 | 3% |
| Nursing and Health Professions | 9 | 2% |
| Other | 54 | 14% |
| Unknown | 178 | 47% |
Attention Score in Context
This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 169. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 28 November 2023.
All research outputs
#244,071
of 26,017,215 outputs
Outputs from European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry
#19
of 1,897 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#5,026
of 345,231 outputs
Outputs of similar age from European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry
#1
of 32 outputs
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So far Altmetric has tracked 1,897 research outputs from this source. They typically receive a lot more attention than average, with a mean Attention Score of 12.0. This one has done particularly well, scoring higher than 98% of its peers.
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