On Jan. 21 USA Today released a new study done by Kaiser Permanente that shows ADHD diagnoses in children is on the rise since 2001 when the last study was done. The study finds that most diagnoses are in boys rather than girls and medical professionals are contributing the rise in ADHD to the fact that more information is available about the learning disability than ever before. Kaiser says that there has been a 24% rise.
The new study only looked at children's medical records and not the concerns of parents. The study was also very strict on what they were looking for since all 840,000 children looked at were only looking at children diagnosed by a medical professional and between the ages of five and 11.
The fact that boys are more likely to be diagnosed with ADHD just like with autism suggests that boys are more susceptible to the neurological disorder that makes focus and several other things more difficult for them. One Chicago pediatrician suggests that girls may just be overlooked over boys because their symptoms that would lead to a diagnosis are milder. Girls are more likely to be inattentive but not hyperactive which is what brings most parents to have their child looked at.
It has also been found that children that come from families with a higher income are also more likely to be diagnosed than lower income children. Many professionals are attributing this to the fact that they feel that there is a higher concern over a child's ability to be top performing in school and the fact that their children are not prodigies in Kindergarten makes them seek out a diagnosis.
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