The Significance of a Higher Prevalence of ADHD and ADHD Symptoms in Children Who Stutter.

Purpose: Research suggests that attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and its symptoms occur more frequently in individuals who stutter. The purpose of this study was to document the prevalence of ADHD diagnoses and ADHD symptoms in children who stutter and examine potential relationships between ADHD and stuttering characteristics.

Method: A total of 204 children between the ages of 5 and 18 years (M = 9.9 years; SD = 3.5 years) and their parents participated in the study. Parents completed the ADHD Rating Scale (ADHD-RS) indexing Inattention and Hyperactivity-Impulsivity symptoms, and children completed the age-appropriate version of the Overall Assessment of the Speaker's Experience of Stuttering assessing the adverse impact of stuttering. Chi-square proportions and Mann-Whitney U tests were used to assess differences in demographic and other variables of interest between children with and without an ADHD diagnosis. Multiple linear regression was used to assess relationships between ADHD symptoms and stuttering characteristics.

Results: Parents reported that 17.2% of children who stutter in our sample had been diagnosed with ADHD. Over 40% of children without an ADHD diagnosis had ADHD-RS scores that met the criteria for further evaluation. No significant relationship between ADHD symptoms and stuttering severity was found, but child age and inattention scores significantly, albeit modestly, predicted the adverse impact of stuttering.

Conclusions: Researchers and clinicians might be privy to a child's ADHD diagnosis, but they should recognize that many children who stutter without an ADHD diagnosis may exhibit elevated symptoms of inattention and hyperactivity-impulsivity. These symptoms can complicate both research outcomes and the treatment of stuttering.

Supplemental material: https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.28899620.