Clinical and Economic Burdens of ADHD Across Developmental Stages: A Review
- 1Texas Consortium in Behavioral Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA
- 2Interdisciplinary Neuroscience Program, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Dell Medical School, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712, USA
Abstract
Background: Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a prevalent neurodevelopmental disorder that can persist across the lifespan and is associated with substantial clinical, economic, and psychosocial burden. This narrative review examines the clinical and economic burdens of ADHD on individuals and families, encompassing direct medical costs, including assessment and treatment expenditures, alongside non-medical costs, educational and occupational disruption, caregiving demands, and adverse mental health outcomes among family members. It synthesizes evidence across developmental stages and geographic regions and considers the clinical implications of these interconnected burdens. Methods: A structured search of PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Embase, supplemented by reference-list screening, identified English-language publications from January 2000 through June 2026. Evidence was synthesized narratively across direct medical, non-medical, and family-related burdens, prioritizing large population-based and administrative claims studies, longitudinal investigations, systematic reviews, and meta-analyses. Interpretation considered study design, confounding factors, economic perspectives, and differences in cost estimation. Results: ADHD is associated with substantial healthcare, non-medical, and family-related economic costs. Reported costs encompass diagnostic assessment, treatment, comorbidity, and adverse events, alongside educational support, occupational losses, accidents, and criminal justice involvement. Families experience reduced occupational productivity, elevated caregiving demands, greater healthcare utilization, and increased depression, anxiety, and stress. Conclusions: Clinically, these findings support assessing functional and family-level burden alongside symptoms, identifying and managing comorbidities, maintaining treatment during transitions to adult services, and monitoring tolerability. Integrating these burden domains into routine assessment and treatment planning may help identify modifiable drivers of impairment and guide more comprehensive care across the lifespan for patients and their families.
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BibTeX
@article{salehpour2026clinical,
title = {{Clinical and Economic Burdens of ADHD Across Developmental Stages: A Review}},
author = {Farzad Salehpour and Francisco Gonzalez-Lima},
journal = {Journal of Clinical Medicine},
year = {2026},
month = nov,
doi = {10.3390/jcm15218645},
url = {https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0383/15/21/8645},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Clinical and Economic Burdens of ADHD Across Developmental Stages: A Review
AU - Farzad Salehpour
AU - Francisco Gonzalez-Lima
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/11/06
JO - Journal of Clinical Medicine
DO - 10.3390/jcm15218645
UR - https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0383/15/21/8645
AB - Background: Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a prevalent neurodevelopmental disorder that can persist across the lifespan and is associated with substantial clinical, economic, and psychosocial burden. This narrative review examines the clinical and economic burdens of ADHD on individuals and families, encompassing direct medical costs, including assessment and treatment expenditures, alongside non-medical costs, educational and occupational disruption, caregiving demands, and adverse mental health outcomes among family members. It synthesizes evidence across developmental stages and geographic regions and considers the clinical implications of these interconnected burdens. Methods: A structured search of PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Embase, supplemented by reference-list screening, identified English-language publications from January 2000 through June 2026. Evidence was synthesized narratively across direct medical, non-medical, and family-related burdens, prioritizing large population-based and administrative claims studies, longitudinal investigations, systematic reviews, and meta-analyses. Interpretation considered study design, confounding factors, economic perspectives, and differences in cost estimation. Results: ADHD is associated with substantial healthcare, non-medical, and family-related economic costs. Reported costs encompass diagnostic assessment, treatment, comorbidity, and adverse events, alongside educational support, occupational losses, accidents, and criminal justice involvement. Families experience reduced occupational productivity, elevated caregiving demands, greater healthcare utilization, and increased depression, anxiety, and stress. Conclusions: Clinically, these findings support assessing functional and family-level burden alongside symptoms, identifying and managing comorbidities, maintaining treatment during transitions to adult services, and monitoring tolerability. Integrating these burden domains into routine assessment and treatment planning may help identify modifiable drivers of impairment and guide more comprehensive care across the lifespan for patients and their families.
SN - 2077-0383
ER -