The medical and mental health comorbidities of children with adhd in a sibling control design study

Ibilola O, Silva D Princess Margaret Hospital, Perth, WA, Australia; Telethon Kids Institute and Joondalup Health Campus, Perth, WA, Australia Objectives: Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a common disorder affecting 5% of the children. Although the morbidity of children with ADHD has been examined; most studies are curtailed and unable to control for genetic and parental factors and others are focused on singular comorbidities and their associations with ADHD. Our study investigates the general medical and mental health conditions present in children with ADHD compared to their non-ADHD sibling. Method: Data were collected from a cross-sectional community study of 130 children who met the DSM-IV diagnosis of ADHD and commenced on stimulant medication, compared with their siblings closest in age not diagnosed with ADHD. All parents received paired questionnaires to complete for both index case and sibling. Information on demographics, general paediatric conditions and doctor diagnosed mental health conditions and the need for early allied services were included. Results: There was no difference between the ADHD cases and controls for birthweight, gestation, mean age, but significantly more female non-ADHD siblings. The ADHD child was significantly more likely to be diagnosed with a neurodevelopmental condition including depression, anxiety, obsessive compulsive disorder, autism and learning difficulties when compared with their sibling controls, which corroborates findings from previous study. In their infancy, they were two and half times more likely to be described as a fussy eater (OR 2.68; CI 1.26–5.66); five times more likely to be hospitalised for irritability (OR 5.00; CI 1.10–22.82) and four times more likely to experience sleep issues (OR 4.29; CI 1.85–9.95) in comparison to their non-ADHD sibling. Children with ADHD were more likely to have had significant injury requiring admission, as supported by earlier study and be affected by preservatives and migraine. Children with ADHD were more likely to require allied services which included speech therapy, OT, physiotherapy and psychology support in primary school when compared to their non-ADHD sibling. Conclusion: Our findings suggest children affected with ADHD, from a very early age experience considerably more medical and mental health problems than their non-ADHD siblings despite their shared genetic and environmental factors; hence requiring significantly more services.