Comparison of child self-reports and parent proxy-reports on quality of life of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

BACKGROUND: Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurobiological condition that affects 3%-7% of the pediatric population and significantly compromises the quality of life (QoL) of these individuals. The aim of the current study was to compare child self-reports and parent proxy reports on the QoL of children with ADHD. METHODS: Forty-five children with ADHD, combined type, aged 8-12 years without comorbidities, were compared with 43 typically developing children. PedsQL™ 4.0 (Pediatric QoL Inventory™) Generic Core Scales (physical, emotional, social, and school functioning) were completed by families and children self-reporting their health-related QoL. RESULTS: Children with ADHD reported themselves significantly lowered their PedsQL™ scores on all dimensions in comparison to typically developing children. Statistically significant differences were observed in social functioning (p = 0.010), school functioning (p <0.001), psychosocial health (p <0.001), and total score (p = 0.002). The physical functioning and emotional functioning dimensions did not differ significantly between groups, with p = 0.841 and p = 0.070, respectively. Parents of children with ADHD also reported lower PedsQL™ scores, with statistically significant differences in all dimensions. The relationship between child self-reports and parent proxy reports indicated that there is greater agreement among children with ADHD, except for the school functioning. CONCLUSIONS: This suggests that children with the disorder and their parents have a perception of the functional limitations the disorder brings. It is therefore important to undertake studies to verify the QoL in children with ADHD that aim to provide and measure the scope of the well-being of these children.

The relationship between motor skills, ADHD symptoms, and childhood body weight.

BACKGROUND: Research has suggested an important association between motor proficiency and overweight/obesity. Many children with motor difficulties experience ADHD symptoms which have also been linked with overweight/obesity. Previous research has not considered both ADHD and motor performance when investigating their relationship with overweight/obesity. AIMS: To investigate the relationships between motor performance, ADHD symptoms, and overweight/obesity in children. METHODS AND PROCEDURES: A cross-sectional study was conducted involving189 children aged six to 10 years. Symptoms of ADHD were identified using the SNAP-IV rating scale. Motor impairment (MI) was identified using the Movement Battery Assessment for Children-2. Body composition was estimated from the Body Mass Index (BMI) based on World Health Organization child growth standards. OUTCOMES AND RESULTS: Balance was the only motor skill associated with BMI even after controlling for gender and ADHD. Group comparisons revealed that the proportion of overweight ADHD children was significantly less than the proportion of overweight control children and overweight MI children; the proportion of underweight ADHD children was significantly greater than the proportion of underweight MI children. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: The results highlight the importance of taking into consideration both ADHD symptoms and motor difficulties in the assessment and intervention of physical health outcomes in children with ADHD and/or movement problems.

Motor profile of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, combined type.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to assess the motor profile of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), combined type. METHOD: The case group consisted of 34 treatment-naive, male patients, aged 7-11 years, who had been diagnosed with ADHD, combined type, without comorbidities (except oppositional defiant disorder). The control group was composed of 32 age- and gender-matched, typically developing children. The evaluation was made using the Motor Development Scale, which assessed global and fine motricity, balance, body scheme, and spatial and temporal organization. RESULTS: The results showed that the motor quotients in all areas studied were lower in the ADHD group than in the control group, although in most cases they represent normal values relative to the scale (53% were classified as having "normal medium" motor development, 29% "normal low", 9% "very low", 6% "normal high" and 3% as "lower"). Statistically significant differences between groups were observed in general motor age, general motor quotient, balance, spatial organization, and fine and global motricity. CONCLUSION: Difficulties in motor performance were observed in the children with ADHD, combined type. The identification of such deficits may assist in the design of therapeutic protocols for the treatment of children with this type of ADHD.

Health-related physical fitness children with severe and moderate developmental coordination disorder.

The present study aims to examine physical fitness among children with developmental coordination disorder (DCD) with varying degrees of severity (moderate and severe - mDCD, sDCD), and a group of children without DCD (wDCD), in the city of Manaus, Brazil. Initially, 180 children aged 6-10 years old participated in this study. After being diagnosed according to the DSM-IV-TR, 63 children were then divided into three groups (21 in each group). Health-related physical fitness was measured by means of the Fitnessgram, which included several core components, namely, body composition, muscle strength and endurance, flexibility, and cardiorespiratory resistance. The results showed no statistically significant differences between both groups in any of the assessed components. However, when analyzing the results of each component according to the criteria of the Fitnessgram, we observed that, regardless of the classification group, less than half of the children achieved scores that, according to the motor tests, would classify them as having a healthy fitness. Children with sDCD, mDCD and wDCD presented similar levels of health-related physical fitness, with an unsatisfactory performance for the component strength and muscular endurance. We therefore emphasize the importance of further research in this area, more particularly when it comes to following the development of motor skills and physical fitness in children with DCD, as well as the observation of the interactions between these variables over time.