ADHD is one of the most common mental disorders of childhood and adolescence, and characterized by inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity symptomatology. The objective of this study is to find out the difference between ADHD prevalence in parents of children with or without ADHD.

A total of 132 parents of 90 ADHD children; aged between 6 and 12, and 67 parents of 45 non-ADHD children were recruited in the study. Control parents were matched to ADHD children parents according to age, gender and educational status.

Rate of childhood ADHD were significantly higher among parents of ADHD children compared to the parents of control group (P = 0.039). Rate of adult ADHD (P = 0.076) was not significantly but higher among parents of ADHD children compared to the parents of control group.

In our study, we found the prevelance of childhood ADHD in parents of children with ADHD, similar to those reported by published studies but the prevelance of adult ADHD is lower than most of the previous studies. There may be several reasons for us to find a relatively low rate of adult ADHD. Firstly, in our study only parents of ADHD children are investigated, but in the previous studies not only parents but also siblings of ADHD children are investigated. Secondly, in the previous studies adult ADHD is diagnosed according to DSM-III; not DSM-IV. Under the highlight of our findings, assessing adult ADHD in patients with having a child with ADHD is important for treatment and prognosis.

The authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.