A pilot controlled family study of DSM-III-R and DSM-IV ADHD in African-American children.
BACKGROUND
Very little is known about attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in African-American children, and although the familial transmission of ADHD has been well established in white samples, prior work has not evaluated this feature of ADHD in African-American families.


METHODS
Subjects were 37 first-degree relatives of children with DSM-III-R-defined ADHD and 52 first-degree relatives of non-ADHD comparison children matched for ethnicity, age, and gender. DSM-III-R-based structured interviews (modified to include DSM-IV diagnoses) provided the basis for psychiatric diagnoses in relatives.


RESULTS
The risks for both DSM-III-R and DSM-IV ADHD were significantly greater in first-degree relatives of ADHD probands than in relatives of controls. In addition, the relatives of ADHD probands also were at higher risk for oppositional defiant disorder, antisocial personality disorder, major depression, generalized anxiety, and substance use disorders.


CONCLUSIONS
These results suggest that ADHD and related disorders are familial in African-Americans. Further work is needed to confirm the familial transmission of ADHD in African-American children and to explore the role of genetics as well as environmental factors in the transmission of the disorder.
Samuel
V J
VJ
Pediatric Psychopharmacology Unit, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston 02114, USA.
George
P
P
Thornell
A
A
Curtis
S
S
Taylor
A
A
Brome
D
D
Mick
E
E
Faraone
S V
SV
Biederman
J
J
D000293:Adolescent; D001741:Black or African American / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D001289:Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000235:genetics; D044383:Black People; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002648:Child; D005190:Family / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D010865:Pilot Projects; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology