Zhang Y, Miao YY, Wang FX, Li X, Wang JH, Wang ZL, Ren QS, Wang YL, Yuan FJ, Zhou YJ, Shang MY. Effects of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder on growth in children and adolescents: A systematic review and meta-analysis. World J Psychiatry 2025; 15(10): 110404 [DOI: 10.5498/wjp.v15.i10.110404]
Corresponding Author of This Article
Feng-Xia Wang, FCCP, School of Nursing, Pingdingshan University, Middle Section, Chongwen Road, Xincheng District, Pingdingshan 467000, Henan Province, China. 13673759892@163.com
Research Domain of This Article
Pediatrics
Article-Type of This Article
Meta-Analysis
Open-Access Policy of This Article
This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Yi Zhang, Ying-Ying Miao, Feng-Xia Wang, Xin Li, Ji-Hong Wang, Zhang-Lin Wang, Feng-Juan Yuan, Yu-Jing Zhou, Mo-Yu Shang, School of Nursing, Pingdingshan University, Pingdingshan 467000, Henan Province, China
Qing-Song Ren, Department of Intensive Care Unit, Pingdingshan First People’s Hospital, Pingdingshan 467099, Henan Province, China
Yong-Le Wang, Department of Cardiology, Pingdingshan First People’s Hospital, Pingdingshan 467099, Henan Province, China
Author contributions: Zhang Y conceived and designed the study; Wang JH provided administrative support; Ren QS and Wang YL provided study materials or patients; Wang FX, Wang ZL, Zhou YJ and Shang MY contributed to data collection and assembly; Zhang Y, Wang FX, and Li X contributed to data analysis and interpretation; and Zhang Y, Miao YY, and Li X drafted the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final version of the manuscript.
Supported by First-class Undergraduate Course Construction Project of Henan Province (Online and Offline Hybrid Course), No.[2021] 21548; and 2021 Pingdingshan Smart Nursing Key Laboratory.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors declare no conflict of interest for this article.
PRISMA 2009 Checklist statement: The authors have read the PRISMA 2009 Checklist, and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the PRISMA 2009 Checklist.
Open Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: https://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Received: June 10, 2025 Revised: July 23, 2025 Accepted: September 2, 2025 Published online: October 19, 2025 Processing time: 111 Days and 23.8 Hours
Abstract
BACKGROUND
Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and its pharmacological treatments may influence growth in children and adolescents. This meta-analysis aimed to clarify their effects on the physical development, especially weight and height.
AIM
To investigate the effects of ADHD and its treatment on growth in children and adolescents.
METHODS
Researchers reviewed 18 studies published up to September 2023 from databases such as PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane, and Web of Science. They analyzed changes in body weight, height, and body mass index (BMI) before and after ADHD treatment, along with the risks of overweight and obesity.
RESULTS
Children with ADHD undergoing long-term medication therapy showed decreased actual weight [weighted mean difference (WMD) = -9.50] and height (WMD = -0.15), along with a slight increase in weight standard deviation scores (WMD = 0.23) and height z scores (WMD = 0.10). BMI showed a non-significant downward trend (WMD = -1.72). Regarding overweight and obesity risks, the pooled odds ratios were 1.37 and 1.16, respectively, but these were not statistically significant.
CONCLUSION
Overall, the study suggests that long-term pharmacological treatment for ADHD may be associated with reduced growth in weight and height among young patients. However, no clear link was found between ADHD and increased risk of overweight or obesity. These findings highlight the importance of monitoring growth in children receiving medication for ADHD.
Core Tip: This meta-analysis of 18 studies explored how long-term use of medication for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) affects growth in children and adolescents. Results show that medication use is linked to decreases in weight and height, with slight increases in weight and height z scores, while body mass index showed a non-significant downward trend. No significant increase in overweight or obesity risk was observed. These findings underscore the need for careful growth monitoring in children on ADHD medication, as long-term treatment may impair physical development without substantially affecting obesity risk. The study highlights important considerations for clinicians managing young patients with ADHD.
