title: Screening for the attention deficit hyperactivity disorder phenotype using the strength and difficulties questionnaire.
abstract: The strengths and difficulties questionnaire (SDQ) is a broad-band child mental health instrument, which has been reported to be a good screener for the ADHD phenotype. Questionnaires containing the SDQ and the 18 SNAP-IV items corresponding to the DSM-IV ADHD symptoms were completed by parents and teachers for 66% (N = 6,233) of all 7- to 9-year-olds in the city of Bergen, Norway, 2002. Screening properties of the five-item SDQ hyperactivity-inattention subscale for the DSM-IV ADHD phenotype were examined. Using the DSM-IV ADHD phenotype based on both informants as the gold standard (5.2% of the sample), the receiver operating characteristics (ROC) analyses demonstrated an area under the curve of 0.91 (95% CI: 0.90-0.92) for parent and 0.95 (95% CI: 0.94-0.95) for teacher SDQ hyperactivity-inattention subscale ratings. The SDQ hyperactivity-inattention predictive algorithm identified 74% of those with the ADHD combined subtype as possible or probable cases, but only 22% of those with the inattentive subtype. The 5-item long SDQ hyperactivity-inattention subscale is a shorter substitute for the 18-item ADHD symptom list. The SDQ predictive algorithm had an acceptable sensitivity for the ADHD combined subtype, but low sensitivity for the ADHD inattentive and the ADHD hyperactive subtypes.
authors.affiliation: Unifob Health Department, RBUP Vest, 7810 Bergen, Norway. anne.ullebo@uni.no
authors.forename: Anne Karin
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Ullebø
authors.forename: Maj-Britt
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Posserud
authors.forename: Einar
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Heiervang
authors.forename: Christopher
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Gillberg
authors.forename: Carsten
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Obel
mesh_terms: D000465:Algorithms; D001289:Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / Q000175:diagnosis*; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000379:methods*; D008603:Mental Health; D009664:Norway; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D011594:Psychometrics; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires