The marriage-related risk factors during maternal pregnancy in children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder

Background  The purpose of this research was to investigate the relationship between marriage-related risk factors during maternal pregnancy and subsequent development of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Methods  The research design was a retrospective case–control study. The case group included 60 patients that fulfilled the ADHD criteria of Fourth Edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV). The controls were normal children randomly selected and matched for their sex and age. Their biological mothers completed a questionnaire about marital adaptation, marital satisfaction and the incidence of stressful life events during pregnancy. Results  The results showed that the incidence of positive life events, marital adaptation and marital satisfaction during maternal pregnancy was significantly lower in the case group, and conditional logistic regression analysis showed that marital adaptation during pregnancy and pregnancy before marriage were important risk factors for ADHD. Conclusion  Negative emotion during maternal pregnancy may be an important risk factor for ADHD.