WASHINGTON -- Attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) doesn't go away, even in the latest decades of life, Dutch researchers reported here.
About 3% of adults over age 60 in The Netherlands still had ADHD, reported , of the European Network of Adult ADHD, and colleagues at the American Professional Society of ADHD and Related Disorders (APSARD) meeting.
"ADHD is not outgrown in adults, and neither in older people," Kooij told ڴŮ. "The prevalence is a little lower, but the disorder can still be found in older individuals, who also still suffer from typical ADHD problems like restlessness, distractability, and from concurrent depression and anxiety."
Action Points
- Note that this study was published as an abstract and presented at a conference. These data and conclusions should be considered to be preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed journal.
It was once thought that ADHD occurred only in childhood, but more research has determined that symptoms frequently persist into adulthood. Treatment for adult ADHD is similar to that for childhood ADHD, and often involves using stimulant drugs, as well as psychotherapy and treatment for other co-occurring mental health conditions.
Although studies have assessed the prevalence of adult ADHD, little research has looked at its prevalence in the oldest patients, those age 60 and up, Kooij said. To get a better handle on the prevalence of the condition in this population, Kooij and colleagues assessed data from the Longitudinal Aging Study Amsterdam (LASA) on patients ages 61 to 95.
They applied a two-phase sampling procedure in a population of 231 adults. In the first phase, they deployed the 9-item Barkley ADHD screening list, and in the second phase, they completed a structured diagnostic interview based on DSM-IV criteria in order to diagnose participants, who were rated as either syndromatic or symptomatic for ADHD. They used statistical modeling to determine overall prevalence.
Kooij and colleagues found that among older adults in The Netherlands, 2.8% had syndromatic ADHD, and 4.2% had symptomatic ADHD -- corresponding with about 95,000 and 145,000 older adults, respectively, who suffer from ADHD in The Netherlands, they reported.
Kooij said one other study from Sweden , although it relied only on self-report.
Kooij and colleagues concluded that ADHD doesn't fade or disappear in adulthood, and that further research is needed to investigate the consequences of these ADHD symptoms in old age.
"We are currently asking older people about their treatment wishes, and trying to identify typical themes for older people with ADHD, whom in our country usually have had no diagnosis or treatment before," Kooij told ڴŮ. "We aim to develop a diagnostic and treatment protocol for older people with ADHD the next months."
Disclosures
Kooij and co-authors disclosed no relevant relationships with industry.
Primary Source
American Professional Society of ADHD and Related Disorders
Kooij S, et al "The prevalence of ADHD in older adults in the Netherlands" APSARD 2016; Abstract 15.