Objective: Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and major depressive disorder (MDD) are frequently comorbid among adults. Also, people diagnosed with ADHD in adulthood frequently apply to psychiatry departments with complaints of anxiety and depression, especially irritability. In this study, it was aimed to determine the prevalence of ADHD symptoms and diagnosis among adult female patients, who were referred to the outpatient psychiatry clinic and diagnosed with MDD as well as to evaluate the relationship between symptoms of ADHD and MDD.
Method: Sixty-one female patients with MDD, who were evaluated for the first time in a training and research hospital between June 2008 and July 2009 were enrolled in the study. MDD severity was mild-moderate according to Clinical Global Impression Scale (CGI-S) and none of the patients had Axis I comorbidity. Hamilton Depression Scale (HAM-D), Wender Utah Rating Scale (WURS) and Adult ADHD Rating Scales (A-ADHRS) were applied to the participants. Non-parametric methods were used for analyses and p value was set at 0.05.
Results: In the study, 31.1% of patients were found to have WURS scores 36 and above. Four patients (6.5% of the whole sample and 11.1% of those scoring at least 36 with WURS) had adult type ADHD, when they were evaluated with A-ADHRS and interviewed according to DSM-IV criteria. There were no significant differences between patients with WURS ?36 and others in terms of their educational levels, HAM-D scores, number of depressive episodes, and duration for the remission of index episode. Similarly, there were no significant differences between patients with WURS ?36 and patients diagnosed with adult ADHD according to A-ADHRS and DSM-IV criteria in terms of their age, educational levels, HAM-D scores, number of depressive episodes, and duration for the remission of index episode.
Conclusion: The prevalence of adult ADHD was higher than those reported for general community in our country. The lack of relationship between the evaluated variables of MDD and symptoms as well as diagnosis of ADHD in our sample may be due to our inclusion of female outpatients with mild/moderate MDD. Further studies evaluating those relationships may yield different data related to comorbidity of ADHD-MDD.
Key words: Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, adult, comorbidity, female, major depression
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