Prevalence and effect of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder on school performance among primary school pupils in t
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PRIMARY RESEARCH
Annals of General Psychiatry Open Access
Prevalence and effect of attention‑deficit/hyperactivity disorder on school performance among primary school pupils in the Hohoe Municipality, Ghana Kingsley Afeti and Samuel Harrenson Nyarko*
Abstract Background: Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is one of the most common disorders in early childhood. However, not many studies have been conducted on the prevalence and effect of ADHD on school performance in Ghana. This study sought to ascertain the prevalence of ADHD and its effect on school performance among primary school pupils in the Hohoe municipality of Ghana. Methods: This is a cross-sectional descriptive study that included 400 primary school pupils in the Hohoe Municipality of Ghana. The study adopted the disruptive behaviour disorder rating scale which includes the three subtypes of ADHD among pupils in the form of a close-ended questionnaire for data collection. Results: The results revealed the overall prevalence of ADHD to be 12.8%. The males had a higher prevalence (14.4%) compared to the females (10.5%). For the subtypes, the prevalence was 8.0% for attention-deficit disorder, 8.5% for hyperactivity disorder and 3.8% for the combined subtype. In terms of school performance, the results showed that there was a significant difference in the school performance between ADHD-positive pupils and the negative status pupils among the various core subjects. Conclusions: Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder was quite prevalent among primary school pupils in the Hohoe Municipality, and has impacted negatively on their school performance. Screening of pupils for ADHD should be integrated into the school health services to enable early detection and management. Keywords: Prevalence, Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, Primary school pupils, Hohoe, Ghana Background Education is an important tool for national development. In the developing countries including Africa, where the literacy level is low, significant efforts are directed toward the need to increase the level of literacy through increasing priority for education [1]. In Ghana, there have been some initiatives to improve upon school work, including the introduction of the School Feeding Programme, provision of school uniforms and shoes to students and the awarding of scholarships to needy but brilliant children. *Correspondence: [email protected] Department of Population and Behavioural Sciences, School of Public Health, University of Health and Allied Sciences, Hohoe, Ghana
In spite of these efforts, little is done to identify and eliminate the impediments to learning, especially among children. One of such impediments is attention-deficit/ hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), which has been identified to affect 3–12% of primary school children [2]. Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder is one of the most common disorders in early childhood [3]. It is characterized by inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity, cognitive, behavioural, and emotional deficits. It i
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