| Background. Few studies have identified etiologic risk factors and correlates that are specific to ADHD, particularly in light of the high magnitude of comorbidity with other disorders.; Objectives. To determine the individual and familial correlates for ADHD, to examine the longitudinal course of social and psychiatric correlates and outcomes of ADHD, and to examine the temporal stability and course of behavioral manifestations and social functioning of children with ADHD across adolescence and adulthood. Subjects, methods and analysis are discussed.; Results. In terms of psychological factors, ADHD is associated with increased neurotic traits, short attention span, irritability, learning/reading problems, aggression, and delinquency. In terms of biological and neurocognitive correlates, ADHD is associated with shorter working memory, lower IQ, abnormal neurological findings, allergy, and complaints of stomachaches and nausea. In terms of familial factors, ADHD was not systematically related with parental substance use or anxiety disorders, but some differences did emerge in parental relationships in that ADHD is associated with maternal overprotection. In terms of outcomes, ADHD is associated with poorer academic performance, increased problems with peers and teachers, increased risks of developing ODD, Depression, and Learning/Reading Problems. With regards to ADHD-comorbid subtypes, the results of analyses of individual and familial correlates as well as social and psychiatric outcomes provide persuasive evidence to the differentiation of ADHD-comorbid from ADHD alone group.; Conclusion. In general, our findings based on a sample of high-risk children, support the findings of previous studies using clinic-based or epidemiological samples. In addition to the correlates common to psychiatric disorders, our findings indicate that ADHD is specifically associated with some individual correlates that may play a more important role than non-specific correlates in the trajectory of ADHD outcomes. Familial factors provide weak evidence to differentiate ADHD from non-ADHD but strong evidence to differentiate among comorbid subtypes. Furthermore, our findings suggest that ODD accounts for the development of Depression and that CD and Depression account for the development of Substance Abuse/Dependence among youth with ADHD. Finally, our findings indicate that ADHD is a heterogeneous disorder with high psychiatric comorbidity, which may comprise subtype of ADHD. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)... |
