The effects of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), gender and treatment on growth outcomes in children followed into adulthood were studied by researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA. Of 140 with ADHD and 120 control boys recruited, 80% were reassessed at 10-year follow-up. A diagnosis of ADHD was not associated with height trajectories over time or growth outcomes. Stimulant treatment was not associated with differences in growth. Among subjects with ADHD, major depression was associated with significantly larger weight in females and smaller height in males. These results were not consistent with the Multimodal Treatment study showing height deficits in children with ADHD and prolonged medication treatment. [1]
COMMENT. Young adults diagnosed with ADHD and treated with psychostimulants in childhood show no evidence of an association of the diagnosis of ADHD or its treatment with deficits in growth outcomes at 10-year follow-up. Females with ADHD are at risk of weight gain and depression and in males wih ADHD, short stature is associated with risk of depression.