Real-life instability in ADHD from young to middle adulthood: a nationwide register-based study of social and occupational problems.

BACKGROUND: Studies using self-reports indicate that individuals with ADHD are at increased risk for functional impairments in social and occupational settings, but evidence around real-life instability remains limited. It is furthermore unclear if these functional impairments in ADHD differ across sex and across the adult lifespan. METHOD: A longitudinal observational cohort design of 3,448,440 individuals was used to study the associations between ADHD and residential moves, relational instability and job shifting using data from Swedish national registers. Data were stratified on sex and age (18-29 years, 30-39 years, and 40-52 years at start of follow up). RESULTS: 31,081 individuals (17,088 males; 13,993 females) in the total cohort had an ADHD-diagnosis. Individuals with ADHD had an increased incidence rate ratio (IRR) of residential moves (IRR 2.35 [95% CI, 2.32-2.37]), relational instability (IRR = 1.07 [95% CI, 1.06-1.08]) and job shifting (IRR = 1.03 [95% CI, 1.02-1.04]). These associations tended to increase with increasing age. The strongest associations were found in the oldest group (40-52 years at start of follow). Women with ADHD in all three age groups had a higher rate of relational instability compared to men with ADHD. CONCLUSION: Both men and women with a diagnosis of ADHD present with an increased risk of real-life instability in different domains and this behavioral pattern was not limited to young adulthood but also existed well into older adulthood. It is therefore important to have a lifespan perspective on ADHD for individuals, relatives, and the health care sector.

Health-related quality of life and burden of illness in adults with newly diagnosed attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in Sweden.

BACKGROUND: This observational, cross-sectional, retrospective chart review aimed to identify factors determining health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in adults with newly diagnosed attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in Sweden. METHODS: Adult participants with a new clinical diagnosis of ADHD were enrolled from two specialist outpatient clinics in Stockholm, Sweden, from 2013 to 2015. Data extracted from patient records included demographics, clinical characteristics and comorbid psychiatric diagnoses identified using the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI). Depression severity was assessed using the Montgomery-Åsberg Depression Rating Scale - Self-reported (MADRS-S). The self-rated five-dimension EuroQol questionnaire (EQ-5D) was used to measure HRQoL. Predictors of EQ-5D index score were identified using multivariate linear regression adjusting for age, sex, education level, and main income source. RESULTS: The mean age of the 189 enrolled patients was 35.2 years (standard deviation [SD], 12.3), and 107 (57%) were female. Psychiatric comorbidities were present in 92 patients (49%), with anxiety and depression being the most common diagnoses. The mean EQ-5D index score was 0.63 (SD, 0.28). Low EQ-5D index scores were significantly associated with high MADRS-S scores, multiple comorbid psychiatric disorders, low educational achievement, female sex, and not having a main income derived from employment or self-employment. CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that adults with newly diagnosed ADHD experience low HRQoL, which may often be exacerbated by psychiatric comorbidities such as anxiety and depression. Patients presenting with ADHD and psychiatric comorbidities in adulthood may require particular care and resources in the management of their ADHD.

Treatment patterns and costs in patients with generalised anxiety disorder: one-year retrospective analysis of data from national registers in Sweden.

PURPOSE: To investigate medication use, direct healthcare costs and comorbidities in patients with generalised anxiety disorder (GAD) within specialised care in Sweden 2006-2007. METHODS: A retrospective study was conducted using data from the National Patient Register and the Swedish Prescribed Drug Register. All patients with a primary GAD (ICD-10) diagnosis in 2006 were followed for 12 months to study medication use and health care consumption. Resource use was evaluated from the number of hospitalisation episodes, number of visits to outpatient care and medication dispensed. Costs were calculated by multiplying the number of visits and hospitalisation episodes with the corresponding unit costs. Descriptive statistics were used for all analyses. RESULTS: Three thousand seven hundred and one patients with a primary GAD diagnosis were included in the study. Thirty-four percent of the patients (n=1246) had at least one secondary comorbid diagnosis. SSRIs/SNRIs were the most commonly dispensed medications, followed by benzodiazepine-anxiolytics, hypnotics and antihistamines. The mean number of treatment days for all medications prescribed and dispensed was highest (1144 days) for elderly women aged 65 years or more (treatment days per patient could exceed 365 days due to multiple concomitant medication use). Elderly patients were frequently prescribed benzodiazepine-anxiolytics (n=92/117 men [79%]; n=238/284 women [84%]) and hypnotics (n=70 men [60%]; n=178 women [63%]) compared to the overall study population (n=612/1303 men [47%] and n=935/2398 women [39%], respectively). GAD-related direct costs accounted for 96% of all direct costs. Mean number of hospitalisation days and corresponding costs were high (19 days; SEK 92,156; n=358 [9.7%]) in relation to medication (SEK 5520; n=3352 [91%]) and outpatient costs (SEK 7698; n=3461 [94%]). CONCLUSIONS: The high rate of polypharmacy, significant psychiatric comorbidity and widespread use of benzodiazepine-anxiolytics and medications not indicated for GAD suggest that the disease burden is high. Total direct costs associated with the disease were high but still likely to be underestimated.