Prevalence of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in primary school children

CONTEXT: There is a lacuna of studies on Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in the Indian context. AIMS: (i) To identify the prevalence of ADHD in primary school children, (ii) To identify the gender difference in the prevalence of ADHD, (iii) To compare the distribution of ADHD among different socioeconomic status, (iv) To identify the presence of any co-morbid factors associated with ADHD. SETTINGS AND DESIGN: This is a cross sectional study of school aged children selected from four different schools in Coimbatore district. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Seven hundred seventy children aged between 6 and 11 years were selected from four schools in Coimbatore district after obtaining informed consent from their parents. The presence of ADHD was assessed by using Conner's Abbreviated Rating Scale (CARS) given to parents and teachers. The children identified as having ADHD were assessed for the presence of any co-morbid factors by administering Children's Behavioural Questionnaire (CBQ) to the teachers and Personal Information Questionnaire to the parents. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS: Statistical Product and Service Solutions (SPSS) 10 software, Mean and Standard Deviation, and student's t test were used for statistical analysis. RESULTS: The prevalence of ADHD among primary school children was found to be 11.32%. Prevalence was found to be higher among the males (66.7%) as compared to that of females (33.3%). The prevalence among lower socio-economic group was found to be 16.33% and that among middle socio-economic group was 6.84%. The prevalence was highest in the age group 9 and 10 years. CONCLUSION: The present study shows a high prevalence of ADHD among primary school children with a higher prevalence among the males than the females.