Understanding Public Interest in ADHD in Nigeria

Objectives: To analyze how Nigerians search for ADHD-related information online using Google Trends data, focusing on relative interest in symptoms, diagnosis, and treatment over the past 12 months to identify public awareness patterns and potential knowledge gaps. Background: ADHD remains underdiagnosed in Nigeria because hyperactivity and inattention are usually associated with bad behavior or spirituality, rather than as symptoms of a medical condition. Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder(ADHD) is a neurodevelopmental condition that often leads to challenges in attention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity. As internet access expands, Nigerians increasingly rely on web searches for health information. Analyzing search interest in ADHD-related terms can help reveal significant gaps in mental health awareness and education across the country. Methods: We utilized Google Trends to explore how Nigerians search for ADHD-related information by entering four terms: “ADHD symptoms,” “Adderall,” “ADHD Disorder,” and “ADHD Treatment.” We restricted the results to web‐search queries conducted in Nigeria between June 30, 2024, and June 29, 2025. We, then, exported the weekly relative interest scores in CSV format for subsequent trend analysis. Results: Across the 53-week period, “ADHD symptoms” recorded the highest relative search interest in Nigeria (Mean = 31.3, SD = 29.4). “Adderall” followed with a lower mean of 6.0 (SD = 15.9), reflecting sporadic attention. In contrast, “ADHD Disorder” (Mean = 0.25, SD = 1.25) and “ADHD Treatment” (Mean = 1.0, SD = 6.28) showed consistently low interest, with minimal weekly variation. Conclusions: Nigerians consistently search for “ADHD symptoms” which indicates growing awareness but their low interest in diagnosis and treatment reveals gaps in their mental health education. The limited internet access in Nigeria may have affected the results of this research. Future research should explore stigma, screening, and digital literacy barriers to improve ADHD understanding and care.