TY - JOUR
T1 - ADHD-related sex differences in emotional symptoms across development
AU - De Ronda, Alyssa C.
AU - Rice, Laura
AU - Zhao, Yi
AU - Rosch, Keri S.
AU - Mostofsky, Stewart H.
AU - Seymour, Karen E.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© This is a U.S. Government work and not under copyright protection in the US; foreign copyright protection may apply 2023.
PY - 2024/5
Y1 - 2024/5
N2 - To investigate developmental changes in emotion dysregulation (ED) and associated symptoms of emotional lability, irritability, anxiety, and depression, among girls and boys with and without ADHD from childhood through adolescence. Data were collected from a sample of 8–18-year-old children with (n = 264; 76 girls) and without (n = 153; 56 girls) ADHD, with multiple time-points from a subsample of participants (n = 121). Parents and youth completed rating scales assessing child ED, emotional lability, irritability, anxiety, and depression. Mixed effects models were employed to examine effects and interactions of diagnosis, sex [biological sex assigned at birth], age among boys and girls with and without ADHD. Mixed effects analyses showed sexually dimorphic developmental patterns between boys and girls, such that boys with ADHD showed a greater reduction in ED, irritability, and anxiety with age compared to girls with ADHD, whose symptom levels remained elevated relative to TD girls. Depressive symptoms were persistently elevated among girls with ADHD compared to boys with ADHD, whose symptoms decreased with age, relative to same-sex TD peers. While both boys and girls with ADHD showed higher levels of ED during childhood (compared to their sex-matched TD peers), mixed effects analyses revealed substantial sexually dimorphic patterns of emotional symptom change during adolescence: Boys with ADHD showed robust improvements in emotional symptoms from childhood to adolescence while girls with ADHD continued to show high and/or increased levels of ED, emotional lability, irritability, anxiety and depression.
AB - To investigate developmental changes in emotion dysregulation (ED) and associated symptoms of emotional lability, irritability, anxiety, and depression, among girls and boys with and without ADHD from childhood through adolescence. Data were collected from a sample of 8–18-year-old children with (n = 264; 76 girls) and without (n = 153; 56 girls) ADHD, with multiple time-points from a subsample of participants (n = 121). Parents and youth completed rating scales assessing child ED, emotional lability, irritability, anxiety, and depression. Mixed effects models were employed to examine effects and interactions of diagnosis, sex [biological sex assigned at birth], age among boys and girls with and without ADHD. Mixed effects analyses showed sexually dimorphic developmental patterns between boys and girls, such that boys with ADHD showed a greater reduction in ED, irritability, and anxiety with age compared to girls with ADHD, whose symptom levels remained elevated relative to TD girls. Depressive symptoms were persistently elevated among girls with ADHD compared to boys with ADHD, whose symptoms decreased with age, relative to same-sex TD peers. While both boys and girls with ADHD showed higher levels of ED during childhood (compared to their sex-matched TD peers), mixed effects analyses revealed substantial sexually dimorphic patterns of emotional symptom change during adolescence: Boys with ADHD showed robust improvements in emotional symptoms from childhood to adolescence while girls with ADHD continued to show high and/or increased levels of ED, emotional lability, irritability, anxiety and depression.
KW - Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
KW - Comorbidity
KW - Developmental patterns
KW - Emotion regulation
KW - Irritability
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U2 - 10.1007/s00787-023-02251-3
DO - 10.1007/s00787-023-02251-3
M3 - Article
C2 - 37368082
AN - SCOPUS:85163374884
SN - 1018-8827
VL - 33
SP - 1419
EP - 1432
JO - European Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
JF - European Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
IS - 5
ER -