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©The Author(s) 2025. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Psychiatry. Oct 19, 2025; 15(10): 110404
Published online Oct 19, 2025. doi: 10.5498/wjp.v15.i10.110404
Published online Oct 19, 2025. doi: 10.5498/wjp.v15.i10.110404
Effects of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder on growth in children and adolescents: A systematic review and meta-analysis
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/
Corresponding author: Feng-Xia Wang, FCCP, School of Nursing, Pingdingshan University, Middle Section, Chongwen Road, Xincheng District, Pingdingshan 467000, Henan Province, China. 13673759892@163.com
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
Revised: July 23, 2025
Accepted: September 2, 2025
Published online: October 19, 2025
Processing time: 111 Days and 23.8 Hours
Core Tip
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.