Parent rated bedtime resistance and comorbidity may predict levels of attention among Turkish children diagnosed with ADHD in on-line education classes during the COVID-19 outbreak

Yusuf Ozturk; Gonca Ozyurt; Vahdet Gormez; Zeynep Dilara Aslankaya; Burak Baykara; Ozalp Ekinci; Ilyas Kaya; Ibrahim Adak; Ibrahim Selcuk Esin; Serkan Turan; Mesut Sari; Guler Gol Ozcan; Cagatay Ermis; Nazan Ekinci; Ozge Ipek Dogan; Ibrahim Tiryaki; Sureyyanur Kitapcioglu; Ali Evren Tufan; Neslihan Inal; Aynur Pekcanlar Akay

doi:10.14744/nci.2022.77674

Parent rated bedtime resistance and comorbidity may predict levels of attention among Turkish children diagnosed with ADHD in on-line education classes during the COVID-19 outbreak

North Clin Istanb. 2022 Oct 19;10(2):197-204. doi: 10.14744/nci.2022.77674. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Yusuf Ozturk¹, Gonca Ozyurt², Vahdet Gormez³, Zeynep Dilara Aslankaya³, Burak Baykara⁴, Ozalp Ekinci⁵, Ilyas Kaya⁶, Ibrahim Adak⁵, Ibrahim Selcuk Esin⁷, Serkan Turan⁸, Mesut Sari⁹, Guler Gol Ozcan¹⁰, Cagatay Ermis⁴, Nazan Ekinci⁵, Ozge Ipek Dogan⁵, Ibrahim Tiryaki⁷, Sureyyanur Kitapcioglu¹¹, Ali Evren Tufan¹, Neslihan Inal⁴, Aynur Pekcanlar Akay⁴

Affiliations

¹ Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Bolu Abant Izzet Baysal University Faculty of Medicine, Bolu, Turkiye.
² Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Katip Celebi University Faculty of Medicine, Izmir, Turkiye.
³ Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Medeniyet University, Istanbul, Turkiye.
⁴ Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Dokuz Eylul University Faculty of Medicine, Izmir, Turkiye.
⁵ Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, University of Health Sciences Faculty of Medicine, Erenkoy Health Practice and Research Center, Istanbul, Turkiye.
⁶ Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Istanbul University Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul, Turkiye.
⁷ Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Ataturk University Faculty of Medicine, Erzurum, Turkiye.
⁸ Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Tekirdag State Hospital, Izmir, Turkiye.
⁹ Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Istanbul Cam and Sakura City Hospital, Istanbul, Turkiye.
¹⁰ Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Bilecik State Hospital, Bilecik, Turkiye.
¹¹ Akademi Psychological Counseling and Training Center, Istanbul, Turkiye.

Abstract

Objective: This study aimed to compare the attention levels, of Turkish children and adolescents with Attention Deficit/ Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in on-line education classes with healthy controls.

Methods: This study is a cross-sectional, internet-based, case-control study that recruited 6-18 years old patients diagnosed with ADHD and receving treatment and healthy controls from eight centers. The measurements used in the study were prepared in the google survey and delivered to the participants via Whatsapp application.

Results: Within the study period, 510 children with ADHD and 893 controls were enrolled. Parent- rated attention decreased significantly in both groups during on-line education classes due to COVID-19 outbreak (p<0.001; for each). Children and adolescents with ADHD had significantly elevated bedtime resistance, problems in family functioning difficulties than control children according to parental reports (p=0.003; p<0.001; p<0.001, respectively). Furthermore, bedtime resistance and comorbidity significantly predicted attention levels in on-line education.

Conclusion: Our findings may underline the need to augment student engagement in on-line education both for children without attention problems and those with ADHD. Interventions shown to be effective in the management of sleep difficulties in children as well as parent management interventions should continue during on-line education.

Keywords: ADHD; COVID-19 outbreak; on-line education.