Adults referred to a national ADHD clinic in Iceland: clinical characteristics and follow-up status.

OBJECTIVE: Evaluate adults referred to a national ADHD clinic, by comparing those diagnosed with those who were not, and those who screened negative and to evaluate changes among those diagnosed at follow-up. METHOD: Data obtained from 531 patients' medical records (49.7% males). One hundred thirty-six screened negative, 395 positive and 305 met diagnostic criteria for ADHD. Eighty-three of them were contacted by phone at follow-up. RESULTS: ADHD diagnosis was associated with lower educational status and more concerns expressed by parents and teachers during childhood. Participants not diagnosed with ADHD more often met diagnostic criteria for dysthymia, agoraphobia and generalized anxiety, and were more likely to be diagnosed with two or more comorbid disorders. At follow-up, all reported a significant reduction of ADHD symptoms, irrespective of medication, but the medicated participants reported fewer symptoms of inattention and better functioning in daily life. CONCLUSION: Adults referred to ADHD clinics may have multiple mental health problems, regardless of whether they receive ADHD diagnosis or not. This could have implications for differential diagnoses of ADHD in adults and emphasises the need to have appropriate treatment available for both groups. Psychoeducation about ADHD may be very helpful in decreasing anxiety and ADHD symptoms.

[Effectiveness of medical treatment in the adult ADHD unit of Landspitali 2015-2017].

BACKGROUND: Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is the most common neurodevelopmental disorder among children but symptoms may persist into adulthood. At Landspitali - the National University Hospital an interdisciplinary unit is responsible for ADHD-diagnosis and for commencing treatment of adult ADHD. The aim of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of pharmaceu-tical treatment provided by the unit and the effects of psychiatric comorbidities. METHODS: The study is retrospective and includes all individuals ≥18 years of age who received pharmaceutical treatment in the adult ADHD unit at Landspitali 2015-2017. Individuals who had previously received treatment by the unit or were already on medication for ADHD were excluded. Information on symptoms and wellbeing before and after treatment were obtained from three questionnaires, an ADHD rating scale, DASS and QOLS. RESULTS: Of 211 patients who met inclusion criteria 144 (68%) completed the treatment provided by the unit on average 143 days. Impulsivity/hyperactivity predicted treatment failure with OR=0.96 (p=0.015). There was a statistically significant difference in all key response variables before and after pharmaceutical treatment (p<0.001). The Cohen's d effect size for ADHD variables were 3.18 for attention-deficit and 1.40 for impulsivity/hyperactivity. The effect size for quality of life was 1.00 and among the DASS subscales the maximum effect size was 1.43 for stress. Increased quality of life correlated with decreased symptoms as rated by DASS and the ADHD rating scale. Treatment success rates were significantly -higher for DASS but not for attention-deficit, impulsivity/hyperactivity and quality of life among individuals with psychiatric comorbidities alongside ADHD. Gender did not affect treatment effectiveness. CONCLUSIONS: Those who complete treatment within the ADHD unit achieve good results with decreased psychiatric symptoms and improved quality of life. Treatment discontinuation is a challenge.