title: Comorbidity between obesity and attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder: population study with 13-15-year-olds.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This study analyzes whether obese children have a higher risk of attention deficit/hyperactivity "characteristics" (AD/HD) than do children with other nutritional states.
  
  
  METHODS
  This study included 35,403 participants from 486 community schools. They completed the AD/HD scale of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) and were weighed and measured. 2879 of the participants were obese and 78 were morbidly obese (BMI>40).
  
  
  RESULTS
  A discrete, nonsignificant, increment was found in the AD/HD characteristics of male participants with morbid obesity, as compared with the other nutritional states. Among morbidly obese females, the prevalence of AD/HD characteristics was slightly superior, although not significantly, to that found in participants with normal weight, overweight or obese (BMI<40).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Among nonclinical populations with a communitarian origin, previous findings reporting high rates of AD/HD in obese children are not replicated. This increment in the prevalence of AD/HD among hospitalized obese children could be the result of selection bias.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, University of Valencia, Spain. luis.rojo@uv.es
authors.forename: Luis
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Rojo
authors.forename: Elías
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Ruiz
authors.forename: José Alberto
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Domínguez
authors.forename: Myralys
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Calaf
authors.forename: Lorenzo
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Livianos
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001289:Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015897:Comorbidity; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009765:Obesity / Q000453:epidemiology*; D012307:Risk Factors; D013030:Spain / Q000453:epidemiology