A new study revealed that African-American children were less likely to have attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) compared to whites.
The study was funded by the National Institutes of Health and conducted by the research team of Pennsylvania State University in University Park led by Dr. Paul Morgan. The study aims to establish a link between race and ethnicity on the risk of having ADHD. The research team analyzed 15,000 data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study of the Kindergarten Class between 1998 and 1999. The subjects were monitored until their eighth grade.
The population was categorized based on their ethnicity. 60 percent were white, 19 percent Hispanic, 15 percent African-American, and the rest were composed of other races. The researchers conducted an interview with the parents to list the ADHD symptoms during their children’s kindergarten, first grade, third, fifth, and eight grades. They were also asked if they had given medication to their children during their fifth and eighth grades.
The team presented their findings after analyzing all the data gathered and adjusting the percentage based on other factors such as household income, maternal education, and low birth weight.
Their initial analysis revealed that 69 percent of the African-American children were less likely to have ADHD diagnosis while 56 percent of the Hispanics showed less chance as well.
After the final phase of monitoring these kids during their fifth and eighth grade, 7 percent of the whites were already taking medication, 3 percent of the African-Americans, 4.4 percent of the Hispanics, and 3.5 percent of other ethnicities. This highlights the special needs of the African-American kids for ADHD diagnosis and medication as this disorder can affect the children’s learning and behavior.
The research team recommends pediatricians, school psychologists, and teachers to provide additional support to these kids who were not given ADHD diagnosis and to respect cultural differences in values.
This study was published on the June 24 issue of Pediatrics.
