Minority children have lower rates of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), but why? Is the disorder simply rare for this group of people, or do disparities that exist in healthcare mean that minority children’s wellbeing is at risk to under-diagnosis? According to a new study, published in Paediatrics, minority children are less likely to be diagnosed with the condition, which further places their wellness at risk as they end up missing out on good treatment options that could change how their mental health develops.
According to study lead researcher Paul Morgan, from the Pennsylvania State University in University Park, ‘We’re seeing that the disparities occur as early as kindergarten and then remain and continue until the end of eighth grade. It’s a consistent pattern of what we’re interpreting as comparative under-diagnosis for minority populations.’ This finding is based on data from more than 17,000 children across the United States from kindergarten (or reception) and up to the eighth grade (or the age of 13).
For the study, the researchers regularly asked parents if their children had been diagnosed with ADHD, examining other factors that affect behaviour, such as attention and access to healthcare. White children were twice as likely to be diagnosed with ADHD as Hispanic and Asian children, while African American children were two-thirds less likely to be diagnosed than their Caucasian counterparts. The results of the study also showed that minority children often do not get treated even after a diagnosis, but the researchers are unsure as to why there were these huge disparities.
Morgan explained, ‘What that suggests in our study is that there are children who are likely deserving of a diagnosis, but who aren’t receiving a diagnosis, which raises the question of a lack of treatment.’ Dr. Tanya Froehlich, a paediatrician from the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital in Ohio, who was not a part of the study, commented, ‘We know that people with ADHD have higher rates of failing a grade in school, lower academic achievement, lower achievement in their jobs, higher rates of incarceration, higher rates of substance abuse, more problems with relationships, and higher rates of depression and anxiety.’
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