Prospective Follow-Up of Girls With Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Into Adolescence: Evidence for Continuing Cross-Domain Impairment

• Published in: Journal of consulting and clinical psychology 2006-06, Vol.74 (3), p.489-499
• Main Authors: Hinshaw, Stephen P, Owens, Elizabeth B, Sami, Nilofar, Fargeon, Samantha
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Abnormal psychology; Adolescent; Adolescents; Attention Deficit and Disruptive Behavior Disorders - diagnosis; Attention Deficit and Disruptive Behavior Disorders - epidemiology; Attention Deficit and Disruptive Behavior Disorders - therapy; Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity; Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity - diagnosis; Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity - epidemiology; Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity - therapy; Attention Deficit Disorders; Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder; Behavior Problems; Child; Children & youth; Comparative Analysis; Effect Size; Female; Females; Follow-Up Studies; Followup Studies; Girls; Human; Human Females; Humans; Hyperactivity; Impairment; Individual Differences; Interview, Psychological; Matched Groups; Observer Variation; Preadolescents; Prevalence; Prospective Studies; Severity of Illness Index; Social Behavior; Symptoms (Individual Disorders)
• ISSN: 0022-006X; 1939-2117
• DOI: 10.1037/0022-006X.74.3.489

The authors performed 5-year prospective follow-up (retention rate = 92%) with an ethnically diverse sample of girls, aged 11-18 years, who had been diagnosed in childhood with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD; N = 140) and a matched comparison group ( N = 88). Hyperactive-impulsive symptoms were more likely to abate than inattentive symptoms. Across multiple domains of symptoms and functional impairment, girls with ADHD continued to display deficits of moderate to large effect size in relation to the comparison girls, but few differences emerged between the inattentive versus combined types. Follow-up effects withstood statistical control of crucial covariates for most outcomes, meaning that there were specific effects of childhood ADHD on follow-up status; in other instances, baseline disruptive disorders accounted for adolescent effects. For outcomes identical at baseline and follow-up, girls with ADHD showed more improvement across time than comparison girls (except for math achievement). Overall, ADHD in girls portends continuing impairment 5 years after childhood ascertainment.