If your child has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, it’s likely he or she will also have the disorder as an adult.
For example, a study published in the 2016 Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry noted that of the 579 children with ADHD who were studied, 60 percent of them “demonstrated symptom persistence” into adulthood.
Another study, published in The Lancet Psychiatry in 2016, states that while ADHD may follow a child into adulthood, it’s important to note that methods used to determine its prevalence through the years may have involved several variables including — but not limited to — differences in the source of information and ADHD rating scales used.
Margaret Sibley, a licensed clinical psychologist and an assistant professor of psychiatry and behavioral health at the Florida International University Center for Children and Families, who is also a co-author of both studies, says there’s “probably a 50-50 chance that childhood symptoms will continue to be severe enough to meet ADHD criteria as an adult.” At the same time, she explains that the entire notion of childhood ADHD symptoms carrying through into adulthood is complex; much more needs to be observed and understood when factoring in each individual’s ADHD symptoms and the possibility that they’ll persist in later years.
