New CDC Data Highlights the Need for Guidelines on Adult ADHD

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The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) today released new data that highlight issues around attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in adults. The October 10, 2024, Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) provides crucial updates on the burden of adult ADHD, sharing information specifically on prevalence, treatment barriers, and telehealth.¹

Using the National Center for Health Statistics Rapid Survey System (RSS) data collected from October through November 2023, investigators found that 6% of US adults had a current diagnosis of ADHD, with 8% of US adults reporting a past or present diagnosis. About 7 in 10 of those receiving stimulant pharmacotherapy reported trouble obtaining their ADHD medication due to a shortage. The RSS also reports that more than 50% of adults with ADHD were diagnosed in adulthood, with larger discrepancies for woman than men; 45% of men and 25% of women were diagnosed before 11 years of age, whereas 40% of men and 61% of women were diagnosed in adulthood.

On the positive side, telehealth during the COVID-19 pandemic allowed a total of 46% of adults with a current ADHD diagnosis to receive care.

According to Gregory Mattingly, MD, and Ann Childress, MD, these data demonstrate the need for the upcoming American Professional Society of ADHD and Related Disorders’ (APSARD) Adult ADHD Guidelines.^2,3 A set of guidelines would help improve patient outcomes by standardizing care among all mental health clinicians who see adult patients with ADHD.

“These will be the first US guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of adults with ADHD and will provide a valuable framework of treatment for clinicians and families. While many unanswered questions remain, these findings bring us one step closer to a deeper understanding of the needs of adults with ADHD,” wrote Mattingly and Childress.²

“The CDC shakes up things we have taught for years,” Mattingly told Psychiatric Times in an exclusive video.

Back in January 2024, Psychiatric Times spoke with David W. Goodman, MD, an adult psychiatrist, assistant professor in the department of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Johns Hopkins Hospital School of Medicine, and a clinical associate professor at the State University of New York. Goodman hosted a town hall discussion of the adult ADHD guidelines at the APSARD 2024 Conference.

“We don't have guidelines for adults with ADHD, like we do for children and adolescents. Now there are international guidelines developed in Canada, Europe, South Africa, Australia, and the UK. We've been slow in the United States to address this because it is an arduous and scientific endeavor that requires a number of experts,” Goodman shared. “We're looking to standardize the care of patients with ADHD in adults in the United States. We want clinicians to come up to speed with the clinical practice guidelines and clinical practice of taking care of patients. It also affects patients and their family and the general public. It is giving a baseline guide of what is to be expected when you are diagnosed and treated.”

The guidelines will be available in late 2024 or early 2025.

References

1. Staley SB, Robinson LR, Claussen AH, et al. Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder diagnosis, treatment and telehealth use in adults – National Center for Health Statistics Rapid Surveys System, United States, October – November 2023. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep. 2024;73(40).

2. Mattingly G, Childress A. Clinical implications of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in adults: what new data on diagnostic trends, treatment barriers, and telehealth utilization tell us. J Clin Psychiatry. 2024;85:4.

3. Childress A, Sibley M, Solanto MV, et al. Guidelines in the United States for the diagnosis and treatment of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in adults: why they are needed. Psychiatr Ann. 2023;53(10):461-469.