The Prevalence of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Symptoms in Schoolchildren in a Highly Consanguineous Community

Abstract

Objective: The objective of the present study was to find the prevalence of attention deficit hyperactivity (ADH) symptoms in a sample of primary schoolchildren in Qatar and investigate the behaviour of the children with and without ADH symptoms in a highly consanguineous community. Subjects and Methods: A total of 2,500 primary school students, aged 6–12 years, were randomly selected from the government primary schools, and 1,869 students (947 boys and 922 girls) gave consent to participate in this study. An Arabic questionnaire was used to collect the sociodemographic variables and a standardized Arabic version of the Conners’ Teacher Rating Scale for ADH symptoms. Results: Of the 947 boys, 158 (16.7%; 95% confidence interval, CI, 14.4–19.2) and of the 922 girls, 50 (5.4%; 95% CI 4.1–7.1) scored above the cut-off (≧15) for ADH symptoms, thus giving an overall prevalence of 11.1% (95% CI 9.7–12.6). The children who had higher scores for ADH symptoms were in the age group of 6–9 years. Children who had higher scores for ADH symptoms had a poorer school performance than those with lower scores (p = 0.002). Two hundred (96.2%) children with ADH were disobedient, 126 (60.6%) noisy and hyperactive, 76 (36.5%) very cranky, 78 (37.5%) troublesome and 79 (37.9%) nervous. The logistic regression identified socio-economic condition, number of children, school performance and poor relationship between parents as the main contributors to ADH. Although the univariate analysis showed a significant relationship (p = 0.010) between ADH symptoms and consanguineous parents, logistic regression did not support this association (p = 0.075). This suggests that consanguinity has no impact on ADH children. Conclusion: The study revealed that ADH is a common problem among schoolchildren. The children with higher scores for ADH symptoms had a poorer school performance than those with lower scores. A significant difference exists between the behaviour of children with and without ADH.

Arab immigrant Muslim mothers' perceptions of children's attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)

“…In a study conducted by Boyle and Lipman (2002), they found that low SES was associated with higher rates of ADHD symptoms. The same results were reported in three studies conducted in the Arab world (Al Hamed, Taha, Sabra, & Bella, 2008;Attia, Tayel, Mounier, Ahmed, & Abo-Rass, 2000;Bener, Al Qahtani, Teebi, & Bessisso, 2008) ADHD is a complex disorder, and factors that contribute to its etiology are still under investigation. Over the years, a variety of hypotheses have emerged related to the causes of ADHD, such as claims that food additives, lead toxins, sugar, yeast, or poor child rearing methods lead to ADHD.…”

“…The significant correlation between low SES, parental education, and ADHD was reported in three studies (Al Hamed, Taha, Sabra, & Bella, 2008;Attia et al, 2000;Bener et al, 2008). It has been hypothesized that children from low socioeconomic statuses, whose parents have limited education or have low incomes, are not given the attention needed from their parents, leading to higher incidences of ADHD symptoms (Bener, Qahtani, & Abdelaal, 2006;Farah et al, 2009).…”

“…In terms of school performance, children with ADHD often have problems with school academics and are described as underperforming when compared with their classmates who do not have ADHD (Abdeldayem & Selim, 2005;Al-Sharbati, Al-Adawi, Ganguly, Al-Lawatiya, & Al-Mshefri, 2008;Al-Sharbati, Al-Hussaini, & Antony, 2003;Al-Sharbati, Zaidan, Dorvlo, & Al-Adawi, 2010;APA, 2000;Barkley, 2006;Bener, Al Qahtani, Teebi, & Bessisso, 2008;Kendall, Leo, Perrin, & Hatton, 2005b). As a result of the associated problems in children with ADHD, -School underachievement and misbehavior are the most frequent characteristics that lead to the assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of ADHD‖ (Bain, 1991, p.135).…”

“…Kamis (2006) emphasized the effects of the absence of parental support as a risk factor for ADHD, and included parental psychological maltreatment of children, gender inequities in the way parents deal with their children, harsh discipline, and physical abuse. Bener et al (2008) found that bad relationships between parents were main contributor to ADHD. Bener et al (2006) hypothesized that such poor inter-parental relationships could impact the way parents communicate and deal with life stressors and thus leave them less attentive to meeting the needs of their own children.…”

“…cultural factors were not elaborated on in any of the reviewed studies from Arab countries, Farah et al (2009) substantiated that cultural factors are important reasons behind the variations in the reported prevalence rates of ADHD in the Arab world. The targeted populations varied across the reviewed studies between school samples (Al Hamed, Taha, Sabra, & Bella, 2008; Al-Sharbati et al, 2004; Al-Sharbati, Al-Adawi, Ganguly, Al-Lawatiya, & Al-Mshefri, 2008; Al-Sharbati, Al-Lawatiya, Al-Adawi, Martin, Al-Sharbati et al, 2010;Al- Obaidi & Ali, 2009;Attia et al, 2000;Bener, Qahtani, & Abdelaal, 2006;Bener et al, 2008;Bu- Haroon et al…”