Impact of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and gender differences on academic and social difficulties among adolescents in Qatari Schools

Background: To evaluate the social and academic impact of adolescents with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and gender differences compared with their non-ADHD peers. Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study using a standardized rating scale of teacher observations was conducted in the schools of Qatar from 7(th) to 12(th) grades. Teachers completed Swanson, Nolan, and Pelham (SNAP-IV) rating scale questionnaires for the ADHD core symptoms together with nine questions to evaluate the academic and social difficulties in all participants. Results: A total of 1775 students (mean age: 15 ± 1.5 years; boys/girls: 717/1058) were included in this study. Based on the SNAP-IV rating scale, 150 students were showing core symptoms of ADHD and classified as having ADHD (8.5%; boys/girls; 93/57) and 1625 students as non-ADHD peers (91.5%; boys/girls; 624/1001). Prevalence of ADHD among adolescent students is 8.5%, and it varied significantly between genders with 13% of boys and 5.4% of girls affected by this disorder. Adolescents with ADHD had more academic and social difficulties than their non-ADHD peers, the boys more so than the girls. Boys with inattentive subtype of ADHD had more academic difficulties than girls, while girls had more social difficulties than boys. Conclusion: The results of this study revealed that ADHD among adolescents is substantially associated with academic and social difficulties in the school environment. Gender differences among students with ADHD should be considered in the school and clinical environment.