Early detection
Although ADHD is barely diagnosable in the very first years of life, the first symptoms are already apparent.
1. Early detection of ADHD: symptoms and signs
Motor development disorders in particular can occur early on. More on this under:
Further typical symptoms by age group (infants, 1 to 3 years, 4 to 6 years and over) can be found at Symptom development in children by age and frequency
2. Risk factors increase the likelihood of ADHD
In addition to looking closely at any early signs of ADHD, it is helpful to look at the various factors that increase the risk of ADHD. The more circumstances there are that increase the risk of ADHD, the more seriously the first symptoms found should be taken.
- Genetic risks
- Suspected or existing ADHD in parents, siblings or grandparents and their children and grandchildren
- prenatal risks (pregnancy problems)
- Circumstances of birth
- early childhood risk factors
- Parents and family as ADHD risk factors
For example, gestational gestosis in those born slightly prematurely increased the risk of the offspring having impairments at the age of 12 months from
- Gross motor skills
- Fine motor skills
- Adaptability
- Language
- social-emotional reaction
- Rate of abnormal values increased.
While no deviations in the above-mentioned areas could be detected at the age of 3 to 6 months, at the age of 12 months there was a significant deterioration in gross motor skills and fine motor skills, with a significantly reduced risk of abnormal speech scores.1