It is well-known that more than 50% of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) cases also have comorbid psychiatric disorders. We evaluated the comorbid psychopathology of Korean children and adolescents with ADHD using a standardized diagnostic instrument. The Korean Kiddie-Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia-Present and Lifetime Version (K-SADS-PL-K) was administered and completed in 105 patients who had been referred to the outpatient and inpatient clinics at the Samsung Medical Center from March 2004 to May 2005. All of the cases were diagnosed as ADHD according to DSM-IV criteria. We analyzed their clinical characteristics and psychiatric comorbidities, and assessed the correlation of any comorbidity with gender, age and ADHD subtype. Among our 105 participants, 70 (66.7%) subjects were diagnosed with combined-type ADHD, 22 (21.0%) were the predominantly inattentive type, only 1 (1.0%) was determined to have the predominantly hyperactive-impulsive type of ADHD, and 12 (11.4%) were classified as not otherwise specified (NOS) ADHD. Eighty (76.2%) subjects had at least one comorbid disorder such as oppositional defiant disorder (n = 53, 50.5%), anxiety disorders (n = 35, 33.3%) and affective disorders (n = 15, 14.3%). Our patients ranged in age from five to 16 years. Among the factors including gender, age, and ADHD subtype, ADHD subtype was the only one significant to comorbidity in our study. The results of this study suggest that psychiatric comorbidity in Korean children with ADHD is similar to the results of previous studies in western countries. Out of all the ADHD subtypes, the combined-type group had a significantly higher ratio of comorbid disorders and psychopathologies.

Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is often poorly understood, and treatment practices are variable. This 12-month, prospective, observational study provides information about the diagnosis, co-morbidities, treatment patterns, and quality of life (QOL) of patients aged 6-17 years with ADHD symptoms from eastern Asia and central and eastern Europe. Here, we present baseline data for the 1068 enrolled and eligible patients in the study (median age 8 years, 82.2% male). Patients were grouped into two cohorts based on whether they were prescribed psycho- and/or pharmacotherapy (n = 794) or not (n = 274) at study entry. On average, patients receiving treatment were significantly older (9.1 vs. 8.4 years, p < 0.001), more severely ill (Clinical Global Impressions [CGI]-ADHD-S, 4.6 vs. 4.2, p < 0.001; Child Symptom Inventory-4 Parent Checklist (CSI-4) ADHD:C, 35.2 vs. 31.9, p < 0.001), and had significantly higher CSI-4 symptom severity scores relating to various co-morbidities than patients not receiving treatment. At study initiation, patient's health-related QOL was significantly impaired as measured on the Child Health and Illness Profile-Child Edition (CHIP-CE) rating scale, with significantly more impairment in the treated group of patients for the Comfort, Risks Avoidance, and Achievement domains. These results provide a description of ADHD and treatment practices in these regions and establish a baseline for gauging changes over time in the study sample.

The KIDSCREEN-52 quality-of-life (KIDSCREEN-52-HRQOL) is a relevant, worldwide tool used for assessing the health-related quality of life in children and adolescents. The purpose of this study was to define measurement properties of the Korean version of the KIDSCREEN-52 HRQOL. The original questionnaire was translated following international translation guidelines. Analysis regarding psychometric properties showed that the Cronbach-alpha ranged from 0.77 to 0.95. The correlation coefficient between the PedQL and KIDSCREEN-52 dimensions were high for the assessments of similar constructs. Therefore, the Korean version of the KIDSCREEN-52 was found to be suitable for use in Korean adolescents.