Is Paternal Smoking at Conception a Risk for ADHD? A Controlled Study in Youth With and Without ADHD.
Objective:Based on emerging preclinical findings suggesting that paternal smoking at conception may be a risk for ADHD in the offspring, we investigated whether a similar effect can be observed in humans.Method:We analyzed data from an opportunistic dataset of girl probands with (N= 140) and without (N= 122) ADHD with available information on paternal smoking at conception. Data were analyzed using Pearson's chi-square tests and multiple logistic regression.Results:ADHD probands had a significantly higher rate of paternal smoking at conception than controls (35% vs. 23%, χ2= 3.82,p= .05) with a significant odds ratio of 1.5. However, the association lost significance after controlling for paternal ADHD, most likely due to limited statistical power.Conclusion:While preliminary, findings suggest that paternal smoking at conception may be a risk factor for ADHD in the offspring.
Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, USA.|Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
Joseph
J
Biederman
Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, USA.
Maura
M
Fitzgerald
Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, USA.|Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
Thomas J
TJ
Spencer
Florida State University, Tallahassee, USA.
Pradeep G
PG
Bhide
Florida State University, Tallahassee, USA.
Deirdre M
DM
McCarthy
Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, USA.
K Yvonne
KY
Woodworth
Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, USA.
Alexandra
A
Saunders
State University of New York Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, USA.|University of Bergen, Norway, USA.
Stephen V
SV
Faraone
D000293:Adolescent; D001289:Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / Q000453:epidemiology; D005220:Fathers; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011247:Pregnancy; D011297:Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects; D012307:Risk Factors; D012907:Smoking
ADHD; nicotine; paternal smoking; pregnancy