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Risk Factors for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

A risk factor is something that increases your likelihood of getting a disease or condition.

It is possible to develop ADHD with or without the risk factors listed below. However, the more risk factors you have, the greater your (or your child’s) likelihood of developing ADHD.

Risk factors include:

  • Gender—Boys are more frequently diagnosed with ADHD than girls.
  • Heredity—ADHD and similar disorders tend to run in families, suggesting there may be a genetic component. People with a parent or a sibling, especially an identical twin, with ADHD are at increased risk of developing the condition.
  • Age—Symptoms typically appear in young children aged 3 to 6 years old.
  • Maternal factors, such as:
    • Smoking during pregnancy
    • Preterm labor
    • Mental health conditions
    • Exposure to certain environmental toxins, such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs)
    • High blood pressure
  • Childhood exposures to environmental toxins, such as lead, which is found in pipes or paint in older buildings
  • Premature birth
  • Overall parental health—A child may be at a higher risk of ADHD if their parent has certain conditions, such as alcohol use disorder or conversion disorder.

Other factors that may increase the risk of ADHD include:

  • Head injury at a young age
  • Being born with a serious heart condition
  • Having Turner syndrome (a genetic condition)
  • Being exposed to certain pesticides
  • Spending over 2 hours a day watching TV or playing video games when young
REFERENCES:

About ADHD. Children and Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder website. Available at: http://www.chadd.org/Understanding-ADHD/About-ADHD.aspx. Accessed October 4, 2017.

Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in adults. EBSCO DynaMed website. Available at:http://www.dynamed.com/topics/dmp~AN~T231898/Attention-deficit-hyperactivity-disorder-ADHD-in-adults. Updated December 27, 2016. Accessed October 4, 2017.

Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children and adolescents. EBSCO DynaMed website. Available at:http://www.dynamed.com/topics/dmp~AN~T113926/Attention-deficit-hyperactivity-disorder-ADHD-in-children-and-adolescents. Updated May 23, 2017. Accessed October 4, 2017.

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). National Institute of Mental Health website. Available at: https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/attention-deficit-hyperactivity-disorder-adhd-the-basics/index.shtml. Updated 2016. Accessed October 4, 2017.

Stern T, Rosenbaum J, et al. Massachusetts General Hospital Comprehensive Clinical Psychiatry. Philadelphia, PA: Mosby Elsevier; 2008.

Understanding ADHD: Information for parents. Healthy Children—American Academy of Pediatrics website. Available at: https://www.healthychildren.org/English/health-issues/conditions/adhd/Pages/Understanding-ADHD.aspx. Updated January 9, 2017. Accessed October 4, 2017.

What is ADHD? Kids Health—Nemours Foundation website. Available at: http://kidshealth.org/en/parents/adhd.html. Updated July 2014. Accessed October 4, 2017.

2/4/2010 DynaMed Systematic Literature Surveillancehttps://www.dynamed.com/topics/dmp~AN~T113926/Attention-deficit-hyperactivity-disorder-ADHD-in-children-and-adolescents: Froehlich TE, Lanphear BP, Auinger P, et al. Association of tobacco and lead exposures with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Pediatrics. 2009;124(6):1054-1063.

1/13/2014 DynaMed Systematic Literature Surveillancehttps://www.dynamed.com/topics/dmp~AN~T113926/Attention-deficit-hyperactivity-disorder-ADHD-in-children-and-adolescents: Silva D, Colvin L, Hagemann E, Bower C. Environmental risk factors by gender associated with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Pediatrics. 2014;133(1):e14-e22.

11/29/2017 DynaMed Systematic Literature Surveillancehttps://www.dynamed.com/topics/dmp~AN~T113926/Attention-deficit-hyperactivity-disorder-ADHD-in-children-and-adolescents: Man KKC, Chan EW, et al. Prenatal antidepressant use and risk of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in offspring: population based cohort study. BMJ. 2017 May 31;357:j2350.

6/3/2019 DynaMed Systematic Literature Surveillancehttps://www.dynamed.com/topics/dmp~AN~T113926/Attention-deficit-hyperactivity-disorder-ADHD-in-children-and-adolescents: Maher GM, O'Keefe GW, et al. Association of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy with risk of neurodevelopmental disorders in offspring: A systematic review and meta-analysis. JAMA Psychiatry. 2018 Aug 1;75(8)809-819.

Last reviewed September 2018 by EBSCO Medical Review Board Adrian Preda, MD