Birth Date May Influence Child's Risk For ADHD Diagnosis

A child's birth date could play a role in determining which kids will be diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and subsequently put on medication to treat it, a new study from Taiwan suggests.   The researchers found that preschool and school-age children who were born in August had an increased risk of being diagnosed with ADHD and receiving medication for it compared to their classmates who were born in September. But this finding did not hold true in teenagers, according to the study, published today (March 10) in The Journal of Pediatrics. Because the cutoff birth date for entering school in Taiwan is August 31, children born in August are typically the youngest in their grades, while children born in September are typically the oldest. A child's age relative to his or her classmates in the same grade may have a significant impact on the diagnosis of ADHD and the prescription of ADHD medications, said Dr. Mu-Hong Chen, the study's lead author and a child and adolescent psychiatrist at Taipei Veterans General Hospital in Taiwan. In the study, the researchers gathered information from a health insurance database of about 380,000 schoolchildren in Taiwan ages 4 to 17. They evaluated the prevalence of children diagnosed with ADHD by birth month, and took a look at those who were prescribed medication as treatment over a period of 14 school years. Because of the cutoff dates in Taiwan, children within the same grade may be almost one year apa...
Source: Healthy Living - The Huffington Post - Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news