Adult attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder symptoms and psychological distress, hazardous drinking, and problem gambling: A population-based study

André J McDonald; Steven Cook; Nigel E Turner; Anca R Ialomiteanu; Robert E Mann; Susan J Bondy; Michael Roerecke; John McCready; Dov Millstone; Hayley A Hamilton; Tara Elton-Marshall; Jürgen Rehm; Paul Kurdyak; Gabriela Ilie; Evelyn R Vingilis; Christine M Wickens; Mark van der Maas; Michael D Cusimano

doi:10.1016/j.psychres.2021.113985

Adult attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder symptoms and psychological distress, hazardous drinking, and problem gambling: A population-based study

Psychiatry Res. 2021 Jul:301:113985. doi: 10.1016/j.psychres.2021.113985. Epub 2021 May 9.

Authors

André J McDonald¹, Steven Cook², Nigel E Turner³, Anca R Ialomiteanu⁴, Robert E Mann³, Susan J Bondy⁵, Michael Roerecke³, John McCready⁶, Dov Millstone⁴, Hayley A Hamilton³, Tara Elton-Marshall⁷, Jürgen Rehm⁸, Paul Kurdyak⁹, Gabriela Ilie¹⁰, Evelyn R Vingilis¹¹, Christine M Wickens³, Mark van der Maas⁴, Michael D Cusimano¹²

Affiliations

¹ Institute for Mental Health Policy Research, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Electronic address: andre.mcdonald@mail.utoronto.ca.
² Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, University of Michigan, Michigan, United States.
³ Institute for Mental Health Policy Research, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
⁴ Institute for Mental Health Policy Research, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
⁵ Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
⁶ Institute for Mental Health Policy Research, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Healthy Horizons Consulting, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
⁷ Institute for Mental Health Policy Research, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada.
⁸ Institute for Mental Health Policy Research, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany.
⁹ Institute for Mental Health Policy Research, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
¹⁰ Department of Community Health and Epidemiology, Faculty of Medicine, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
¹¹ Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada; Department of Family Medicine, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada.
¹² Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Division of Neurosurgery, Department of Surgery, St. Michael's Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

PMID: 34023674
DOI: 10.1016/j.psychres.2021.113985

Abstract

Recognition of ADHD in the adult population is relatively recent. Epidemiological research examining the mental health impact of ADHD in adulthood is thus limited. The objective of this study was to examine whether adult ADHD symptoms are associated with psychological distress, hazardous drinking, and problem gambling, after controlling for traumatic brain injury and sociodemographic characteristics. We analyzed data from a population-based survey administered in 2015 and 2016 to adults aged 18 years and over in Ontario, Canada (N = 3,817). Logistic regression was used to construct unadjusted and multivariable models for each of the three focal relationships. In the unadjusted models, ADHD symptoms were significantly related to psychological distress (OR = 9.3; 95% CI:6.1, 14.0) and hazardous drinking (OR = 2.1; 95% CI: 1.3, 3.4), but not to problem gambling (OR = 1.5; 0.5, 4.3). After adjustment, ADHD symptoms were significantly related to psychological distress (OR = 7.1; 95% CI: 4.6, 11.1), but not hazardous drinking (OR = 1.4; 95% CI: 0.8, 2.5) or problem gambling (OR = 0.6; 95% CI: 0.2, 2.5). This study further highlights the importance of clinicians assessing for concomitant ADHD and psychological distress in adults.

Keywords: Adult ADHD; Alcohol abuse; Epidemiology; Mental health; Problem gambling; Psychological distress.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Adolescent
Adult
Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity* / epidemiology
Comorbidity
Cross-Sectional Studies
Gambling* / epidemiology
Humans
Ontario
Psychological Distress*

Grants and funding

TIR-103946/CIHR/Canada