Recent research has revealed important findings regarding the relationship between attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and hoarding disorder. This study Psychiatric Research Journalfound that people with ADHD had a significantly higher prevalence of hoarding symptoms compared to people with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and healthy people.
The motivation for this study stems from the complex and somewhat misunderstood nature of hoarding disorder. Hoarding disorder, traditionally considered a subtype of OCD, has been recognized as a separate mental illness since 2013. This disorder is characterized by persistent difficulty discarding possessions, regardless of their actual value, leading to a cluttered and unmanageable living space.
“Hoarding disorder is an underdiagnosed disorder in the general population, but many people with ADHD report hoarding symptoms in clinical practice,” said study author Giacomo Grassi, a psychiatrist at the Brain Center Florence in Italy. explain.
“However, only a few studies have investigated the presence of hoarding symptoms in ADHD subjects. Therefore, the aim of the study was to assess the prevalence of hoarding disorder symptoms in adults with ADHD. 2 The second objective was to compare the prevalence of hoarding disorder among ADHD patients, OCD patients, and healthy controls.”
The study involved 157 age- and gender-matched adults: 57 with ADHD, 50 with OCD, and 50 controls. Diagnoses of ADHD and OCD were based on criteria outlined in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5).
Researchers used several validated tools to assess various aspects of these disorders. The Hoarding Inventory-Revised (SI-R) was utilized to assess hoarding symptoms, and the Berkeley Adult ADHD Rating Scale-IV (BAARS-IV) assessed his ADHD symptoms. In addition, the Yale-Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale (Y-BOCS) and the Depression Symptom Questionnaire (SDQ) were used to measure OCD and mood/anxiety symptoms, respectively. The Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS-11) provided insight into the characteristics of impulsivity.
The researchers found that adults with ADHD had a comorbidity rate of hoarding disorder of 32.1%, which was significantly higher than 8% for OCD patients and 4% for healthy controls. Even when the diagnostic criteria for hoarding disorder were narrowed down (by focusing specifically on excessive clutter and difficulty with discarding, while excluding compulsive acquisition), ADHD patients still showed a high prevalence.
Regarding specific hoarding symptoms, ADHD patients’ scores were significantly higher than both OCD patients and healthy controls. Interestingly, no significant differences were found in hoarding symptoms between patients taking and not taking medication within the ADHD group and his OCD group. Additionally, this study highlighted that in the ADHD group, those with comorbid hoarding disorder showed more severe ADHD symptoms and higher impulsivity scores.
“Our study found that significant hoarding symptoms were highly prevalent in adults with ADHD,” Grassi told PsyPost. “Nearly one-third of people with ADHD have significant hoarding disorder symptoms.”
“A surprising finding is that patients with ADHD have higher rates of hoarding disorder than patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder. This latter fact means that in the DSM-5, hoarding disorder is classified under the chapter OCD and related disorders This is important considering that it has been historically considered a type of OCD before being classified as a separate disorder.”
Despite the insightful findings, this study has certain limitations. For example, the small sample size may have limited the depth of clinical differences identified. The researchers are proposing a larger study to further investigate the relationship between ADHD and HD, with a particular focus on implications for treatment.
“The clinical consequences of hoarding symptoms in patients with ADHD, including systemic function and quality of life, are still largely unknown,” Grassi said. “Also, although some case reports suggest that anti-ADHD drugs are effective in patients with a primary diagnosis of hoarding disorder, there are studies that have investigated the effects of anti-ADHD drugs on hoarding symptoms in patients with ADHD. there is no.”
“The message from our study is that hoarding disorder appears to be common in adults with ADHD, and therefore clinicians should pay attention to this comorbidity in the ADHD population,” he said. added.
the study, “Who really hoards?Hoarding symptoms in adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), and healthy controls” is written by Giacomo Grassi, Corinna Moraday, Chiara Cecchelli, and Michael van Ameringen.