According to new study, around 3% of schoolchildren faces symptoms of both autism and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and around 0.5% of children can be diagnosed with both.
The Spanish study, published in Autism Research, further found that about 33% of autistic children and 31% of those with autism symptoms that do not reach the diagnostic threshold also had ADHD.
Moreover, the 10% of children with ADHD also had autism.
The research, done by author Josefa Canals and her colleagues, was aimed to investigate how often ADHD and autism can occur in the same children at the same time.
The study investigated 3,374 preschoolers’ participants ranging from 4 to 5 years and 3,520 school-aged children of age 10 to 11.
They research also included 99% teachers of these children, but only 54% of the families, with a final sample of 3,727 children with information from both families and teachers.
“In the present study, parents and teachers reported a similar 3% prevalence of autism and ADHD traits, with an estimated comorbid diagnosis prevalence of 0.5%. Only 16% of the children had received prior diagnoses for both conditions, although parents and teachers identified traits of autism and ADHD in almost all cases,” the authors stated.
They further added, “Based on the findings, early screening for co-occurring autism and ADHD in both school and family settings is recommended.”
The research was authored by Josefa Canals, Paula Morales-Hidalgo, Núria Voltas, and Carmen Hernandez-Martínez.
