Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, simply known as ADHD is a condition that develops in people right from child hood. Nobody knows the exact causes of this disease. About 8 to 10 percent of children in school are reported to be suffering from this disorder. Such children may be reported as being too active and disruptive to classroom activities. Because boys tend to be more active than girls a great percentage of the cases are about boys. However, girls also suffer from the disease. According to Robert J. Melillo, there are differences in how boys and girls show symptoms of ADHD.
It is estimated that out of every four cases of ADHD, three turn out to be boys. This does not mean that boys suffer more from the disorder than girls. It only means that boys get reported more by teachers than girls. The reason might be that the most common and easily identified symptom of the disorder is hyperactivity. An understanding of the various symptoms of ADHD will help identify the disorder in both boys of girls.
Girls are more likely to show the other signs of the disease apart from hyperactivity. These are forgetfulness leading to misplacement of things, inattention, distraction and disorganization. These are symptoms that will not disrupt classroom activities and therefore will not be noticed easily by teachers.
Another reason that leads to more boys being diagnosed with ADHD is that they are less rebellious in class than boys. For that matter, a girl that is slightly rebellious might be suffering from ADHD but when compared to a boy who does not have the disorder it could be normal or even less.
In a recent survey, it was found out that actually more girls suffer from ADHD than boys. It was also discovered that the symptoms of the disease except those relating to hyperactivity are more pronounced in girls than in boys.
In adulthood there is no difference between men and women who suffer from the disorder. However, there is a marked difference between how adolescent boys display the symptoms of ADHD and how it shows in girls in the same age group. For example, boys in their adolescent years are usually done with mood disorders and anxiety; whiles these still persist in girls in the same group.
The consequences of the disorder may also be different in boys as compared to girls. For example, it has been found out that ADHD may lead to early sexual activity in girls while it causes delay in sexual activity in boys. This means that girls with ADHD are more likely to be involved in teenage pregnancies. On the other hand, more boys with ADHD are likely to be involved in substance abuse than their girl counterparts.
Although there are no differences in how the disorder should be treated in boys and girls, it is studies have shown that it is more likely for girls to accept that they have the disorder so that they can get treated. Boys will not readily accept that they have ADHD.