Anxiety in boys with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder with and without chronic multiple tic disorder.
OBJECTIVE
This study examined the psychosocial and behavioral concomitants of anxiety in clinic-referred boys with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) with and without chronic multiple tic disorder (CMTD).


METHODS
ADHD boys with (n = 65) and without (n = 94) CMTD were evaluated with measures of psychiatric symptoms, mental health risk factors, and academic and social performance.


RESULTS
Boys with CMTD evidenced more severe anxiety and less social competence and were more likely to be living with only one biological parent than the ADHD Only group, but the magnitude of group differences was generally small. The severity of generalized anxiety, separation anxiety, social phobia, and obsessive-compulsive symptoms were uniquely associated with a different pattern of risk factors, and there was some evidence that these patterns differed for the two groups of boys.


CONCLUSIONS
Boys with CMTD had a relatively more severe and complex pattern of anxiety that was associated with different clinical features, all of which suggests that ADHD plus CMTD might better be conceptualized as a distinct clinical entity from ADHD Only. However, findings from the extant literature are mixed, and therefore this remains a topic for further study.
Schneider
Jayne
J
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York 11794-8790, USA. jayne.schneider@stonybrook.edu
Gadow
Kenneth D
KD
Crowell
Judith A
JA
Sprafkin
Joyce
J
D001007:Anxiety / Q000150:complications* / Q000175:diagnosis; D001289:Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / Q000150:complications* / Q000175:diagnosis; D002648:Child; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D004522:Educational Status; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D012307:Risk Factors; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D012919:Social Behavior; D013981:Tic Disorders / Q000150:complications* / Q000175:diagnosis; D005879:Tourette Syndrome / Q000150:complications* / Q000175:diagnosis