Skip to main content
Key Specialties
Cardiology Diabetology Endocrinology Gastroenterology Geriatrics and Gerontology Gynecology and Obstetrics Hematology Infectious Disease Internal Medicine Nephrology Neurology Oncology Pediatrics Respiratory Medicine Rheumatology Surgery
Congress Coverage
2024 ACC Congress 2023 ESMO Congress 2023 EASD Congress 2023 ERS Congress 2023 ESC Congress
Clinical Collections
Advances in Alzheimer’s

At a glance: The ONWARDS insulin icodec trials

A round-up of the ONWARDS phase 3 clinical trials evaluating the novel weekly insulin icodec in people with diabetes.
ADVANCED SEARCH
Log in
Top
Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology
Published in: Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology 5/2012

Open Access 01-05-2012 | Original Paper

Prevalence of the ADHD phenotype in 7- to 9-year-old children: effects of informant, gender and non-participation

Authors: Anne Karin Ullebø, Maj-Britt Posserud, Einar Heiervang, Carsten Obel, Christopher Gillberg

Published in: Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology | Issue 5/2012

Login to get access

Abstract

Purpose

To estimate the prevalence of the ADHD phenotype based on parent and teacher reports in a general population sample of 7- to 9-year-old Norwegian children and evaluate the effect of parent attrition, gender and informant on the prevalence estimate.

Methods

The population consisted of all children (N = 9,430) attending 2nd–4th grade in the City of Bergen, Norway. The 18 symptoms of ADHD corresponding to the SNAP-IV and DSM-IV were included in the Bergen Child Study questionnaire to teachers and parents. Teacher information was available for 9,137 children (97%) and information from both informants was available for the 6,237 children (66%) whose parents agreed to participate in the study.

Results

The prevalence of the ADHD phenotype based on the combination of parent and teacher reports was 5.2% among participants. Teacher ratings of non-participants had a doubled rate of ADHD high scorers with an OR of 2.1 (95% CI, 1.9–2.4). The non-participant ADHD high scorers had more inattentive and fewer hyperactive/impulsive symptoms as compared to participating ADHD high scorers. Teachers reported high scores of hyperactivity/impulsivity and the combined symptom constellation much more frequently in boys than girls, while the difference between genders was less marked according to parent reports.

Conclusions

The ADHD phenotype was twice as prevalent among non-participants as among participants. Reported prevalences in population studies are therefore likely to be underestimates, if such attrition bias is not accounted for. Choice of informant, criteria for symptom count, definitions of subtypes and gender differences influence the prevalence estimates of the ADHD phenotype.
Literature
1.
Abikoff HB, Courtney M, Pelham W, Koplewicz H (1993) Teachers’ ratings of disruptive behaviors: the influence of halo effects. J Abnorm Child Psychol 21:519–533PubMedCrossRef
2.
Abikoff HB, Jensen PS, Arnold L, Hoza B, Hechtman L, Pollack S, Martin D, Alvir J, March JS, Hinshaw S, Vitiello B, Newcorn J, Greiner A, Cantwell DP, Conners CK, Elliott G, Greenhill LL, Kraemer H, Pelham WE, Severe JB, Swanson JM, Wells K, Wigal T (2002) Observed classroom behavior of children with ADHD: relationship to gender and comorbidity. J Abnorm Child Psychol 30:349–359PubMedCrossRef
3.
American Psychiatric Association (1994) Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders: DSM-IV. American Psychiatric Association, Washington
4.
Carlson C, Tamm L, Gaub M (1997) Gender differences in children with ADHD, ODD, and co-occurring ADHD/ODD identified in a school population. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 36:1706–1714PubMedCrossRef
5.
Dopfner M, Breuer D, Wille N, Erhart M, Ravens-Sieberer U (2008) How often do children meet ICD-10/DSM-IV criteria of attention deficit-/hyperactivity disorder and hyperkinetic disorder? Parent-based prevalence rates in a national sample—results of the BELLA study. Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry 17(Suppl 1):59–70PubMedCrossRef
6.
Faraone SV, Sergeant J, Gillberg C, Biederman J (2003) The worldwide prevalence of ADHD: is it an American condition? World Psychiatry 2:104–113PubMed
7.
Gomez R (2007) Australian parent and teacher ratings of the DSM-IV ADHD symptoms: differential symptom functioning and parent–teacher agreement and differences. J Atten Disord 11:17–27PubMedCrossRef
8.
Gomez R, Harvey J, Quick C, Scharer I, Harris G (1999) DSM-IV AD/HD: confirmatory factor models, prevalence, and gender and age differences based on parent and teacher ratings of Australian primary school children. J Child Psychol Psychiatry 40:265–274PubMedCrossRef
9.
Goodman A, Gatward R (2008) Who are we missing? Area deprivation and survey participation. Eur J Epidemiol 23:379–387PubMedCrossRef
10.
Graetz B, Sawyer M, Baghurst P (2005) Gender differences among children with DSM-IV ADHD in Australia. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 44:159–168PubMedCrossRef
11.
Graetz B, Sawyer M, Hazell P, Arney F, Baghurst P (2001) Validity of DSM-IV ADHD subtypes in a nationally representative sample of Australian children and adolescents. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 40:1410–1417PubMedCrossRef
12.
Heiervang E, Goodman A, Goodman R (2008) The Nordic advantage in child mental health: separating health differences from reporting style in a cross-cultural comparison of psychopathology. J Child Psychol Psychiatry 49:678–685PubMedCrossRef
13.
Heiervang E, Stormark KM, Lundervold AJ, Heimann M, Goodman R, Posserud MB, Ullebo AK, Plessen KJ, Bjelland I, Lie SA, Gillberg C (2007) Psychiatric disorders in Norwegian 8- to 10-year-olds: an epidemiological survey of prevalence, risk factors, and service use. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 46:438–447PubMedCrossRef
14.
Nolan E, Gadow K, Sprafkin J (2001) Teacher reports of DSM-IV ADHD, ODD, and CD symptoms in schoolchildren. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 40:241–249PubMedCrossRef
15.
Posserud M, Lundervold A, Gillberg C (2006) Autistic features in a total population of 7–9-year-old children assessed by the ASSQ (Autism Spectrum Screening Questionnaire). J Child Psychol Psychiatry 47:167–175PubMedCrossRef
16.
Rutter M, Cox A, Tupling C, Berger M, Yule W (1975) Attainment and adjustment in two geographical areas. I. The prevalence of psychiatric disorder. Br J Psychiatry 126:493–509PubMedCrossRef
17.
SPSS I (1993) SPSS Advanced Statistics. SPSS, Chicago
18.
Stormark KM, Heiervang E, Heimann M, Lundervold A, Gillberg C (2008) Predicting nonresponse bias from teacher ratings of mental health problems in primary school children. J Abnorm Child Psychol 36:411–419PubMedCrossRef
19.
Swanson JM, Kraemer HC, Hinshaw SP, Arnold LE, Conners CK, Abikoff HB, Clevenger W, Davies M, Elliott GR, Greenhill LL, Hechtman L, Hoza B, Jensen PS, March JS, Newcorn JH, Owens EB, Pelham WE, Schiller E, Severe JB, Simpson S, Vitiello B, Wells K, Wigal T, Wu M (2001) Clinical relevance of the primary findings of the MTA: success rates based on severity of ADHD and ODD symptoms at the end of treatment. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 40:168–179PubMedCrossRef
20.
Szatmari P, Offord D, Boyle M (1989) Ontario Child Health Study: prevalence of attention deficit disorder with hyperactivity. J Child Psychol Psychiatry 30:219–230PubMedCrossRef
21.
Wolraich M, Hannah J, Pinnock T, Baumgaertel A, Brown J (1996) Comparison of diagnostic criteria for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder in a county-wide sample. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 35:319–324PubMedCrossRef
Metadata
Title
Prevalence of the ADHD phenotype in 7- to 9-year-old children: effects of informant, gender and non-participation
Authors
Anne Karin Ullebø
Maj-Britt Posserud
Einar Heiervang
Carsten Obel
Christopher Gillberg
Publication date
01-05-2012
Publisher
Springer-Verlag
Published in
Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology / Issue 5/2012
Print ISSN: 0933-7954
Electronic ISSN: 1433-9285
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/s00127-011-0379-3

Other articles of this Issue 5/2012

Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology 5/2012 Go to the issue

Original Paper

Generating small-area prevalence of psychological distress and alcohol consumption: validation of a spatial microsimulation method

Original Paper

Recall of recent and more remote depressive episodes in a prospective cohort study

Original Paper

Family social support, community “social capital” and adolescents’ mental health and educational outcomes: a longitudinal study in England

Original Paper

Alcohol use and mental distress as predictors of non-response in a general population health survey: the HUNT study

Original Paper

Depressive disorders in school children of suburban India: an epidemiological study

Original Paper

Is poor mental health a risk factor for retirement? Findings from a longitudinal population survey