Prevalence of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in adults individuals with addiction disorders

Background: Addiction Disorders (AD) can be related to Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), especially when the latter is undiagnosed or not adequately treated in childhood. Both disorders have similar functional deficits induced by alterations in shared and superimposed brain circuits. The international scientific literature has already produced many studies, especially about comorbidity with other psychopathologies, while much less has been published regarding the comorbidity of ADHD with AD. Aim: Our work aimed to investigate, through a prospective observational study, the prevalence of adults with ADHD in individuals with AD. Taking into account that the peculiar characteristic of ADHD syndrome consists of dopaminergic dysregulation that underlies hyperactivity and cognitive impairment, the focus of our study was to investigate the possible correlation between ADHD and substance-induced AD subjects (mono-poly-drug addicts) and subjects suffering from gambling disorder (GD) without related substance use. Methods: The study was carried out in addiction outpatient services of the Italian Public Health System. Data were collected on 215 patients through anamnesis and the administration of specific tests for ADHD: Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale (ASRS-v1.1), Wender Utah Rating Scale (WURS) and Diagnostic Interview for ADHD in adults (DIVA 2.0/DIVA 5.0). Results: The percentage of patients with AD who tested positive for symptoms of adult ADHD was 64%, corresponding to 137 patients. Conclusions: These preliminary results allow us to consider that a significant percentage of subjects with AD also have the symptoms and characteristics of adult ADHD, thus confirming the hypothesis of a correlation between AD and adult ADHD syndrome.