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Academic, Interpersonal, Recreational, and Family Impairment in Children with Tourette Syndrome and Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder

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Abstract

This study describes impairment in academic, interpersonal, recreational, and family financial or occupational domains across children in three mutually exclusive diagnostic groups: ever diagnosed with Tourette syndrome (TS), attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and both disorders. In 2014, parents reported on impairment and diagnostic status of children aged 4–17 years (n = 3014). Weighted analysis and pairwise t-tests showed more children with ADHD (with or without TS) experienced impairment in overall school performance, writing, and mathematics, relative to children with TS but not ADHD. More children with TS and ADHD had problematic handwriting relative to children with ADHD but not TS. More children with TS and ADHD had problematic interpersonal relationships relative to those with ADHD but not TS. Children with TS and ADHD had higher mean impairment across domains than children with either TS or ADHD. Findings suggest assessing disorder-specific contributions to impairment could inform targeted interventions for TS and ADHD.

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Notes

  1. ADD: Attention Deficit Disorder.

  2. The dataset for NS-DATA ADHD module is publicly available; the TS module requires a data agreement with the National Center for Health Statistics’ Research Data Center. More information about accessing the NS-DATA datasets can be found at www.cdc.gov/nchs/slaits/ns_data.htm and www.cdc.gov/rdc.

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Funding

The authors disclosed receipt of the following financial support for research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: The research reported in this publication was funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC); the National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities (NCBDDD); and conducted by the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS). Individuals were supported in part by National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) K23MH113884 Grant funding to Dr. Ricketts, UL1TR000124 Grant funding to Dr. Rozenman, and an appointment to the Research Participation Program at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention administered by the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education through an interagency agreement between the U.S. Department of Energy and CDC to Ms. Wolicki. The findings and conclusions in this report are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official position of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or the National Institute of Mental Health.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    Emily J. Ricketts & John Piacentini

  2. Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Research Participation Programs, Atlanta, GA, USA

    Sara Beth Wolicki

  3. Division of Human Development and Disability, National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, USA

    Sara Beth Wolicki, Melissa L. Danielson & Rebecca H. Bitsko

  4. Department of Psychology, University of Denver, Denver, CO, USA

    Michelle Rozenman

  5. Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA

    Joseph F. McGuire

  6. Department of Neurology, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, USA

    Jonathan W. Mink

  7. Ann and Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA

    John T. Walkup

  8. Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, USA

    John T. Walkup

  9. Department of Psychology, Marquette University, Milwaukee, WI, USA

    Douglas W. Woods

  10. 760 Westwood Plz., Rm. 67-467, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    Emily J. Ricketts

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  1. Emily J. Ricketts
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Emily J. Ricketts.

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Conflict of interest

Emily J. Ricketts, PhD has received research support from the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), the Tourette Association of America (TAA), and the BFRB Precision Medicine Initiative granted by the TLC Foundation for Body-Focused Repetitive Behaviors. She has received honoraria from the TAA, and serves on their Diversity Committee. Sara Beth Wolicki, MPH, CPH and Melissa L. Danielson declare that they have no conflict of interest. Michelle Rozenman, PhD has received research support from the NIMH, University of California, Los Angeles Clinical (UCLA) Translational Science Institute, the UCLA Friends of Semel Research Scholar Program, and the International OCD Foundation. Joseph F. McGuire, PhD has received research support from the NIMH, the TAA, American Academy of Neurology, and the American Brain Foundation. He is a consultant for Bracket, Syneos Health, and Luminopia, and also receives royalties from Elsevier. John Piacentini, PhD has received grant or research support from the NIMH, Pfizer Pharmaceuticals through the Duke University Clinical Research Institute CAPTN Network, Psyadon Pharmaceuticals, the TAA, and the BFRB Precision Medicine Initiative granted by the TLC Foundation for Body-Focused Repetitive Behaviors. He has received financial support from the Petit Family Foundation and the TAA Center of Excellence Gift Fund. He has received royalties from Guilford Press and Oxford University Press. He has served on the speakers’ bureau of the TAA, the International OCD Foundation, and the TLC Foundation for Body-Focused Repetitive Behaviors. Douglas W. Woods, PhD receives royalties from Oxford University Press, Guilford Press, and Springer Press, and receives speaking fees from the TAA. John T. Walkup, PhD receives royalties from Guildford Press and Oxford University Press for books on Tourette Syndrome. He also has received grant support, travel support and honoraria from the TAA. Jonathan W. Mink, MD, PhD is a consultant for Biomarin, Inc; Censa, Inc; Abide Therapeutics, Inc, Abide Therapeutics, Inc., TEVA Inc.; Has research contracts with Abeona, Inc.; receives honoraria from the American Academy of Neurology (Associate Editor of Neurology); receives royalties from Elsevier, Inc.; receives grant funding from NIH, Batten Disease Support and Research Association, Batten Research Alliance, AUCD. Rebecca H. Bitsko, PhD declares no conflicts of interest.

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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards. This article does not contain any studies with animal participants performed by any authors. Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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Ricketts, E.J., Wolicki, S.B., Danielson, M.L. et al. Academic, Interpersonal, Recreational, and Family Impairment in Children with Tourette Syndrome and Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. Child Psychiatry Hum Dev 53, 3–15 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10578-020-01111-4

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