Citation

Li L, Li Y, McDonald C, Liu J. Glob. Pediatr. Health 2018; 5: e2333794X18756465.

Affiliation

University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2018, SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/2333794X18756465

PMID

29511708

PMCID

PMC5833162

Abstract

Objective.
Consequences of mild head injury for behavioral adjustment have not been well researched, and little is known about the long-term effects of mild head injury for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).Methods.In this longitudinal study of 418 children in Jintan City, China, parents reported children's history of head injury at age 6 years, and the Child Behavior Checklist was used to measure childiDSM-IV-oriented ADHD at ages 6 (Wave I) and 12 years (Wave II). Regression models were used to calculate the long-term (Wave II) effect of mild head injury on diagnosed ADHD, while controlling for diagnosed ADHD in Wave I.Results.Fifty-seven children (13.6%) had a single injury and 42 (10.0%) had multiple injuries before the age of 6 years. The long-term effect of multiple mild injury on ADHD at age 12 years was significant (R²= 0.103,P<.05), even after controlling for ADHD at age 6 years.Conclusions.Multiple, but not single, mild head injuries before the age of 6 years had a significant long-term effect on ADHD. Thus, injuries traditionally overlooked and underreported still pose significant risks to children's long-term behavioral development.

Language: en

Keywords

ADHD; attention; behavior; children; head injury; traumatic brain injury