Commentary: why diagnose and treat ADHD in adults?
There are compelling reasons why primary care physicians concerned about the well-being of their patients should strive to become competent in recognizing the symptoms of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Despite lingering social controversy, the existence of ADHD among a portion of the adult population is well accepted among medical experts. Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder in adulthood meets formal validity criteria established for medical disorders. An estimated 4% to 5% of the adult population is impaired by ADHD. However,less than one-quarter of these adults have been diagnosed as having ADHD
Feifel
David
D
Department of Psychiatry, University of California, San Diego, San Diego, CA 92103, USA. dfeifel@ucsd.edu
D000328:Adult; D001289:Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / Q000209:etiology* / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy; D004651:Employment; D005195:Family Relations; D006801:Humans; D012919:Social Behavior