Is atopy in early childhood a risk factor for ADHD and ASD? a longitudinal study

Mu-Hong Chen; Tung-Ping Su; Ying-Sheue Chen; Ju-Wei Hsu; Kai-Lin Huang; Wen-Han Chang; Tzeng-Ji Chen; Tai-Long Pan; Ya-Mei Bai

doi:10.1016/j.jpsychores.2014.06.006

Is atopy in early childhood a risk factor for ADHD and ASD? a longitudinal study

J Psychosom Res. 2014 Oct;77(4):316-21. doi: 10.1016/j.jpsychores.2014.06.006. Epub 2014 Jun 21.

Authors

Mu-Hong Chen¹, Tung-Ping Su², Ying-Sheue Chen¹, Ju-Wei Hsu¹, Kai-Lin Huang¹, Wen-Han Chang¹, Tzeng-Ji Chen³, Tai-Long Pan⁴, Ya-Mei Bai⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department of Psychiatry, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan; Department of Psychiatry, College of Medicine, National Yang-Ming University, Taipei, Taiwan.
² Department of Psychiatry, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan; Department of Psychiatry, College of Medicine, National Yang-Ming University, Taipei, Taiwan; Institute of Brain Science, National Yang-Ming University, Taipei, Taiwan.
³ Department of Family Medicine, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan; Institute of Hospital and Health Care Administration, National Yang-Ming University, Taipei, Taiwan.
⁴ School of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan, Taiwan; Research Center for Industry of Human Ecology, Chang Gung University of Science and Technology, Taoyuan, Taiwan.
⁵ Department of Psychiatry, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan; Department of Psychiatry, College of Medicine, National Yang-Ming University, Taipei, Taiwan; Institute of Brain Science, National Yang-Ming University, Taipei, Taiwan. Electronic address: ymbi@mail2000.com.tw.

PMID: 25280829
DOI: 10.1016/j.jpsychores.2014.06.006

Abstract

Objective: Previous studies have found a temporal concordance in the increased prevalence of atopic diathesis/atopic diseases, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) worldwide. But, the temporal association among these 3 distinct diseases is unknown.

Method: 14,812 atopic subjects diagnosed with any atopic disease (asthma, atopic dermatitis, allergic rhinitis, or allergic conjunctivitis) before the age of 3 (atopic cohort) and 6944 non-atopic subjects with no lifetime atopic disease (non-atopic cohort), born between 1997 and 2000, were enrolled and followed to December 31, 2010 to identify the development of ADHD and ASD.

Results: The presence of any atopic disease in early childhood increased the risk of developing ADHD (hazard ratio [HR]: 1.97) and ASD (HR: 3.40) in later life. Greater numbers of atopic comorbidities (4 comorbidities: ADHD: HR: 2.53; ASD: HR: 4.29) were significantly related to a greater risk of developing ADHD and ASD.

Discussion: Atopic diathesis in early childhood elevated the risk of developing ADHD and ASD in later life, with the dose-dependent relationship of more atopic comorbidities with a greater likelihood of ADHD and ASD.

Keywords: ADHD; ASD; Atopy.

Publication types

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

MeSH terms

Adolescent
Asthma / epidemiology
Asthma / psychology
Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / epidemiology*
Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / immunology*
Child
Child, Preschool
Comorbidity
Conjunctivitis, Allergic / epidemiology
Conjunctivitis, Allergic / psychology
Dermatitis, Atopic / epidemiology
Dermatitis, Atopic / psychology
Female
Humans
Hypersensitivity / epidemiology*
Hypersensitivity / psychology*
Longitudinal Studies
Male
Prevalence
Rhinitis, Allergic, Perennial / epidemiology
Rhinitis, Allergic, Perennial / psychology
Risk Factors