Gender differences in cognitive function of children with ADHD based on the Das-Naglieri Cognitive Assessment System

Abstract

Abstract Background:Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neuro-developmental disorder with a relatively high prevalence. Due to the significant difference in incidence between males and females, gender has been used as an important factor in the study of ADHD. This study aimd to explore the gender difference in the cognitive function of children with ADHD using the Das-Naglieri Cognitive Assessment System (DN: CAS). Methods: This study recruited 210 ADHD children as the test group and 118 healthy children as the control group. The gender ratio in each group was 1:1 with same age and grades. The DN: CAS was assessed in both groups. Results: A comparison of sex differences within the ADHD group revealed that boys'performance in Planning was better than that of girls (p=0.018),while the ADHD boys received lower scores in Verbal-Spatial Relations,Sentence Repetition, and Attention than that of girls (P=0.015,0.033,0.031). Only boys in the ≥9 year of age ADHD group received higher scores in Planning than that of girls in the same age range (p=0.031), gender differences were not found in the <9 year of age ADHD group and the control group. While only Boys in the <9 years of age ADHD group perform worser in Simultaneous Processing than that of girls in the same age range(p=0.045), gender differences were not found in the ≥9 year of age ADHD group and the control group. Conclusion: Gender differences exist in cognitive function of children with ADHD.The DN: CAS can provide significant evidence of the weakness of ADHD girls in Planning tasks with acceptable sensitivity. This gender difference is related to age. The DN: CAS can identify gender differences in cognitive function among children with ADHD at various ages and assist clinicians in identifying girls with ADHD who have less pronounced externalizing symptoms.