Attention déficit disorder (ADHD): socialdemographic description and study of candidates genes

O Transtorno de déficit de atenção (TDAH) afeta entre 2% a 6% das crianças em idade escolar e os sintomas se caracterizam por desatenção, impulsividade e hiperatividade. Cerca de 2/3 persistem com sintomas na vida adulta que ocasionam desajustes em váriso setores da vida (afetivo, profissional, acadêmico).Em sua patofisiologia, há envolvimento dopaminérgico e estudos de associação observaram associação positiva com o gene para o transportador da dopamina (DAT1) e o gene para o receptor da dopamina (DRD4). O presente estudo avaliou 102 adultos com TDAH e confirmou prejuízo em vida acadêmica e profissional. Também investigado genes dopaminérgicos e houve associação entre DAT1/DRD4 e TDAHBackground: Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is an early onset neuropsychiatric disorder that affects 2% to 6% of school-age children and into adulthood in as 2/3 of the cases. Symptoms include impulsivity, inattention and hyperactivity. Its pathophysiology is thought to involve the dopaminergic pathway. These symptoms appears in childhood, but the course of the condition and the expression in adulthood is not well characterized yet. Method: This study consists in selecting adults with DSM-IV ADHD. The association between variants of the gene coding for the dopamine transporter (DAT1) and for the dopamine receptor gene subtype4 (DRD4) was also investigated in 102 patients with ADHD and in 481 healthy controls. Results: Our ADHD group presented a predominance of males (61,3%), 86,3% were Caucasians and 90,2% had higher education level (least college level). It was also observed a decreased performance in occupational and academic activities in this group. We found difference of distribution of the DAT1 and DRD4 variant genes between the case and controls. Conclusions: The present report is the first on a Brazilian AHD adult population and the clinical results are quite similar to others observed in other countries in different cultures. In view of previous positive reports in child ADHD, further caractherization of the phenotype is required to clarify the potential role of DAT1 and DRD4 as a risk factor in ADHD