ADHD in children and adolescents and risk of emergency department visits for injuries

Background : The aim of this study was to investigate the risk of emergency department visits for injuries among Danish children and adolescents with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Methods: A cohort study was conducted using data from the Danish National Patient Register during 2005–2007 and 2009–2011. Children and adolescents diagnosed with ADHD, as recorded in the BupBase, in 2004 (n = 767) and 2008 (n = 1347) were followed for injury occurrences and compared with the general population. Analysis on differences by gender and sub-analyses on type of injury were performed. Logistic regression adjusted for age and ethnicity was used to calculate odds ratios (OR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). Results: An increased risk of injuries was observed in all age groups for children and adolescents with ADHD. The highest risk was observed among 14 to 18-year-olds with ADHD: (OR; 95% CI: 1.4; 1.22–1.52) for the 2005–2007 follow-up period and (OR; 95% CI: 1.4; 1.26–1.46) for 2009–2011. Both genders showed an elevated risk of injuries across both follow-up periods: (OR; 95% CI: 1.1; 1.03–1.14) and (OR; 95% CI: 1.2; 1.11–1.21) for males and (OR; 95% CI: 1.3; 1.13–1.43) and (OR; 95% CI: 1.3; 1.21–1.39) for females. Both males and females with ADHD presented increased risk of the majority of injury types studied. The highest increases observed were for moped related injuries in males (OR; 95% CI: 1.4; 1.12–1.72) and (OR; 95% CI: 1.6; 1.35–1.87) and pedestrian injuries in females (OR; 95% CI: 2.1; 1.31–3.34) and (OR; 95% CI: 2.0; 1.36–2.94). Conclusions: Both males and females with ADHD showed a significant difference from the general population both in terms of overall injury risk and for various specific injury causes, although this was based on a limited number of cases.