Prevalence of neurodevelopmental disorders among US children and adolescents in 2019 and 2020

Yiwei Yang; Shi Zhao; Meihui Zhang; Mi Xiang; Jian Zhao; Shucheng Chen; Hui Wang; Lefei Han; Jinjun Ran

doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2022.997648

Prevalence of neurodevelopmental disorders among US children and adolescents in 2019 and 2020

Front Psychol. 2022 Nov 24:13:997648. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.997648. eCollection 2022.

Authors

Yiwei Yang¹, Shi Zhao², Meihui Zhang¹, Mi Xiang¹, Jian Zhao³, Shucheng Chen⁴, Hui Wang³, Lefei Han⁵, Jinjun Ran¹

Affiliations

¹ School of Public Health, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
² JC School of Public Health and Primary Care, Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China.
³ MOE-Shanghai Key Laboratory of Children's Environmental Health, Xinhua Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
⁴ School of Nursing, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China.
⁵ School of Global Health, Chinese Center for Tropical Diseases Research, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.

Abstract

Background: Concerning the changes in the prevalence of neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs), we estimate the prevalence of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism spectrum disorder (ASD), intellectual disorder (ID), and learning disability (LD) among US children and adolescents aged 3-17 years in 2019 and 2020.

Methods: The study includes 14,983 US children and adolescents aged 3-17 years in 2019 and 2020 from the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS). Parents were interviewed about whether their children ever and/or currently had NDDs diagnosed. Prevalence estimates of NDDs were calculated with a survey-based weighting scheme. Logistic regression models were used to estimate the associations between NDDs prevalence and subgroups.

Results: The weighted prevalence of ADHD, ASD, ID, and LD was 8.5% (95% CI: 7.9-9.2%), 2.9% (95% CI: 2.6-3.4%), 1.4% (95% CI: 1.2-1.7%), and 6.4% (95% CI: 5.8-7.0%), respectively. A higher prevalence of ADHD, ASD, ID, and LD was observed in boys, those who ever had anxiety or depression symptoms, those with lower family income, those living in a rented house, ever been bullied, and ever lived with anyone mentally ill.

Conclusion: The study found the prevalence of ADHD, ASD, ID, and LD was different by demographics, comorbidity/mental problems, household/parental characteristics, and stressful life events.

Keywords: United States; attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder; autism spectrum disorder; nationwide prevalence; neurodevelopmental disorders.