Is Paternal Smoking at Conception a Risk for ADHD? A Controlled Study in Youth With and Without ADHD. Issue 11 (September 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Biederman, Joseph; Fitzgerald, Maura; Spencer, Thomas J.; Bhide, Pradeep G.; McCarthy, Deirdre M.; Woodworth, K. Yvonne; Saunders, Alexandra; Faraone, Stephen V.
• Is Part Of: Journal of attention disorders. Volume 24:Issue 11(2020)
• Page Start: 1493
• Page End: 1496
• Publication Date: 2020-09
• Subjects: ADHD -- nicotine -- pregnancy -- paternal smoking; Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder -- Periodicals; Attention -- Periodicals; 616.8589
• DOI: 10.1177/1087054717690809
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1087-0547

Abstract

Objective: Based on emerging preclinical findings suggesting that paternal smoking at conception may be a risk for ADHD in the offspring, we investigated whether a similar effect can be observed in humans.Method: We analyzed data from an opportunistic dataset of girl probands with ( N = 140) and without ( N = 122) ADHD with available information on paternal smoking at conception. Data were analyzed using Pearson's chi-square tests and multiple logistic regression.Results: ADHD probands had a significantly higher rate of paternal smoking at conception than controls (35% vs. 23%, χ 2 = 3.82, p = .05) with a significant odds ratio of 1.5. However, the association lost significance after controlling for paternal ADHD, most likely due to limited statistical power.Conclusion: While preliminary, findings suggest that paternal smoking at conception may be a risk factor for ADHD in the offspring.