Sustained increases in ADHD medication use after the COVID-19 pandemic: A nationwide register-based study.

Abstract

Aims: To examine population-level trends in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) medication use in Norway before, during, and after the COVID-19 pandemic, and to identify age and sex groups with particularly pronounced changes, using interrupted time series analysis to test for a shift in trend from 2020. Methods: Using nationwide Norwegian prescription registry and population data (2009-2024), we calculated annual prevalence of dispensed ADHD medications (ATC code N06BA) across age and sex strata. Interrupted time-series quasi-Poisson regression models were fitted to quantify changes in trends associated with the pandemic period. Results: The analytical sample included 63,737,063 person-years. ADHD medication use was relatively stable until 2020, followed by a sharp, sustained acceleration across all groups. The largest increases occurred among females aged 15-24 years, where annual growth rates rose by 19 percentage points after 2020 (from 5.2% to 24.4% annually). Males aged 15-24 showed the strongest acceleration among men (+9.0 percentage points, from 2.7% to 11.7% annually). Conclusions: The pandemic period coincided with a durable shift in ADHD pharmacotherapy rather than a transient disruption, with particularly pronounced changes in groups historically considered underdiagnosed. Further research is warranted to determine whether this acceleration reflects improved detection or potential overuse.