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05 February 2013

Who gets ADHD?

Three to five percent of children are affected by ADHD, and males are far more likely to get it.

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 Three to five percent of children are affected by ADHD. Until recent years, it was believed that children outgrow ADHD in adolescence. Hyperactivity often does diminish during the teen years, but it is now known that symptoms can continue into adulthood. In fact, up to 65 percent of children with ADHD will continue to exhibit symptoms in adulthood and in a major proportion it may still have a negative impact on their functioning in all aspects of life and society.

Males are far more likely to get ADHD, with the ratio of males to females with ADHD being 3 to 1. However, ADHD tends to be under-diagnosed in girls as they more frequently present with the inattentive type, which is more difficult to identify than the hyperactive-impulsive type.

In certain conditions a higher incidence of ADHD are found i.e. Tourette’s syndrome or Foetal Alcohol Syndrome.

(Reviewed by Dr A van der Walt, MMed (Paed) BSc Hon (Human Genetics),
May 2007 and July 2010)

 

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ADHDOverview
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