ADHD, is it over or underdiagnosed?
The rise in ADHD diagnosis has sparked wide debate about whether it is over diagnosed in society. Others have argued the condition has historically been underdiagnosed and continues to remain underdiagnosed today. These polarising views have fuelled a discussion about the medicalisation of ADHD, are kids with behaviours expected for their age being diagnosed with ADHD, or are many kids with ADHD being missed by the health system?
In the United Kingdom, the number of identified patients prescribed CNS stimulants and medicines for ADHD has increased by 118% since 2015/2016. Does this mean we are experiencing and ADHD epidemic?
In 2013, approximately 62,000 children in Australia were prescribed stimulants with approximately 3,000 aged under 6 years. There were 3.65 million school aged children in Australia in 2013, which suggest that 1.7% of school age children are taking stimulant medication. Naturally, a portion of these children taking medication may be misclassified, however the majority of children with ADHD in Australia are not currently medicated. The prevalence of ADHD in school aged children is roughly 5-6%, which means that we are currently treating far less kids with ADHD then the number of kids with ADHD we would expect in society. These figures certainly suggest that we are unlikely to be overprescribing kids stimulant medications. However, it is important to recognise that many kids with ADHD do not opt for pharmacological therapy, and these statistics are relevant for the paediatric population.
Some of the reasons people believe that ADHD is over diagnosed, is that the number of children displaying ADHD symptoms has remained the same for many years, but the number of diagnosis made and medication prescribed has sharply increased. This is true, but what it fails to recognise is the awareness and investment into diagnosis that has increased. Kids have better access to services, psychological assessments and paediatricians and this can help explain the sharp increase in diagnosis. Moreover, Tik Tok and Instagram have increased the content related to ADHD and arguablY glamourised the symptomology of the condition. This has glamourised inattentiveness and hyperactivity and sparked an epidemic of self diagnosis. Which has grown the feeling that the condition is over diagnosed.
Nevertheless, the best way to resolve the debate is to ensure you see a qualified practitioner who has expertise in diagnosing ADHD, conducting the relevant psychological assessments and is willing to dedicate time to an accurate diagnosis.
What do you think? It is over diagnosed or under diagnosed?
