ERIC Number: EJ1467391
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2025-Apr
Pages: 12
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1087-0547
EISSN: EISSN-1557-1246
Available Date: 0000-00-00
Rising Rate of Hospitalizations in Adolescents with Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder in Spain
Hilario Blasco-Fontecilla1,2,3; José Manuel Ramos4; María Inés López-Ibor1,5; Carlos Chiclana-Actis1,6; Manuel Faraco1,7; Joaquín González-Cabrera1; Eduardo González-Fraile1; Gemma Mestre-Bach1; Héctor Pinargote-Celorio8; Manuel Corpas1,9; Lucía Gallego1,5; Octavio Corral1; Vicente Soriano1
Journal of Attention Disorders, v29 n6 p411-422 2025
Background: Attention deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD) is a leading mental disorder among adolescents globally and is associated with premature mortality. Knowing the trends and key determinants of ADHD in youth are critical for earlier diagnosis and interventions. Methods: We retrospectively examined all hospitalizations in patients aged 11 to 18 years with ADHD in Spain, using data from the Spanish National Registry of Hospital Discharges spanning 2000 to 2021. We compared our data with available literature. Results: Over the 22-year study period, there were 2,015,589 hospitalizations among adolescents in Spain, with 118,609 (5.9%) cases involving mental disorders. There were 10,292 admissions with ADHD, representing 8.7% of all hospitalizations among youth with mental disorders. Median age was of 14 years. Boys represented 72.6%. Admissions with ADHD experienced a 17-fold increase during the last decade (p < 0.001). The in-hospital mortality rate for adolescents with ADHD was 0.1%, lower than for other mental disorders. During the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, admissions decreased but resumed its rising trend thereafter. Conclusion: Hospital admissions for ADHD among adolescents have significantly increased in Spain during the last two decades. This increase outpaced the mild upward trend in ADHD diagnoses over the same period, which is not due to actual increases in the incidence of ADHD, which has remained stable at 5% worldwide. Factors beyond increased awareness, improved identification, and changes in diagnostic criteria must be considered. Boys represented 72.6% of these admissions. In-hospital mortality in adolescents with ADHD was lower than for admissions with other mental disorders.
Descriptors: Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, Behavior Disorders, Trend Analysis, Hospitals, Clinical Diagnosis, Comparative Analysis, Mental Disorders, Gender Differences, Adolescents, Mortality Rate, Evaluation Criteria, Identification, Foreign Countries
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Spain
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: 1Universidad Internacional de La Rioja (UNIR), Logroño, Spain; 2Emooti, Madrid, Spain; 3Center of Biomedical Network Research on Mental Health (CIBERSAM), Madrid, Spain; 4Universidad Miguel Hernández, Alicante, Spain; 5Universidad Complutense, Madrid, Spain; 6Consulta Dr. Carlos Chiclana, Madrid, Spain; 7Centro Adalmed, Madrid, Spain; 8Dr. Balmis University General Hospital, Alicante, Spain; 9Westminster University, London, UK