Prevalence of anxiety symptoms among caregivers of children with ADHD attending pediatric and speech therapy departments

Abstract
Abstract\r\nBackground Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a prevalent mental diagnosis among children. This\r\nleads to a persistent pattern of hyperactivity and inattention that hinders functioning and development and places\r\nstrain on parents. The goal of this study was to assess the incidence of ADHD symptoms in a pediatric population and\r\nto measure anxiety, depression, and the burden of caregiving in parents.\r\nMethods This study included 44 families with children who were monitored at King Hamad University Hospital’s\r\n(KHUH) pediatric and speech therapy departments. In addition to sociodemographic questions, parents were required\r\nto complete scales including the parental ADHD diagnostic scale, the Screen for Child Anxiety Related Disorders\r\n(SCARED), anxiety (GAD7), depression (PHQ9), and burden of care (MCSI).\r\nResults 18% of the young people (n = 8) were formally diagnosed with ADHD. A regression analysis was performed\r\non the population of those with ADHD, considering their sociodemographic traits and the outcomes of other scales.\r\nThis revealed that children with ADHD and high scores on the SACRED questionnaire had a statistically significant\r\nrelationship (p value of 0.012). The GAD-7 (p = 0.942), PHQ-9 (p = 0.671), and MCSI (p = 0.167) questionnaires, on the\r\nother hand, were not significantly related. The study revealed that although parents did not exhibit any increased level\r\nof generalized anxiety, depression, or burden of care, they were more anxious about their children’s health.\r\nConclusion Parents of children with ADHD have more anxiety regarding their children’s health, but they do not\r\nexperience more depression, anxiety, or excessive caregiving burdens because their children have symptoms of\r\nADHD.

Author
Mariwan Husni

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-025-02790-1

ISSN

Publish Date: 2025-05-15