Psychiatric morbidity in the parents of children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

Background: Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is one of the most common mental disorders of childhood and adolescence. It is a chronic and pervasive condition characterized by developmental deficiencies in sustained attention, impulse control, and the regulation of motor activity in response to situational demands. Parents may find it difficult in dealing with behavioral problems of ADHD children. Some studies have shown that parents of ADHD children display substantial psychiatric morbidity in the form of depression and anxiety. Aim : The aim of current study was to examine psychiatric morbidity in parents of children with ADHD. Methods: Thirty parents of children with ADHD were screened for psychological distress over the last week by applying GHQ-12. Those parents who had score of ≥2 on GHQ-12 and/or history of substance use were subjected to SCAN based clinical interview which evaluated psychiatric morbidity in the parents. Results: The results of this study suggest that 46.67% of parents of children with ADHD had presence of a psychiatric diagnosis in which the majority (26.67%) of them had depressive disorder which is several times higher when compared to general population. With respect to substance use diagnosis, 26 % of parents of children with ADHD had substance use diagnosis which is similar to prevalence of substance use disorder in general population. Conclusions: In our study, psychiatric disorder is seen in atleast half of the parents of children with ADHD which suggests that there is need for early assessment and management of psychiatric  problems in parents of children with ADHD.