A control group consisted of 137 non-ADHD males older than age 15 years. Assessment of substance abuse or dependence in the subject group was made via interviews with psychologists at baseline and at 1-year intervals for 4 years. Conduct disorder and parental SUD were associated with an increased risk for SUD in all groups. The authors conclude that untreated ADHD presents a significant risk factor for SUD in adolescence, whereas treating ADHD may reduce this risk. They point to previous studies in which they found ADHD-SUD associations in adults with ADHD who had never been diagnosed or treated as children.
Further examination is necessary in order to evaluate the risk factors for girls and nonwhite boys.
However, these findings may reduce apprehension in treating children who have ADHD and promote earlier intervention. This, in turn, may prevent the academic, psychiatric, and interpersonal complications of ADHD in adolescents, and subsequently, in adults. Reference Biederman J, Wilens T, Mick E, et al.