Objective: The study aims to estimate the frequency with which doctors of various groups submitted claims for the treatment of hyperkinetic disorder (HD; ICD-10) in children and adolescents in outpatient care in the period 1998-2001.
Database: 18.75% random sample of a regional Statutory Health Insurance for the years 1998 until 2001 with n = 41,930 children and adolescents (1998: 0 to 15 years old). Children with HD were defined according to the wording of the diagnosis (1998, 1999) and the ICD 10-code: F90.0-F90.9 (2000, 2001).
Results: Between 1998 and 2001 the percentage of children with a claims diagnosis of HD rose from 1.6% to 2.4% (administrative prevalence). The male to female ratio is about four to one (2001, boys: 3.8%; girls: 1.0%). The highest rate is seen in the age group of 7 to 10 years (2001, boys: 5.8%; girls: 1.4%). The diagnosis was documented by pediatricians in 54% of the children with HD, by GPs in 29% and by child and adolescent psychiatrists in 15%. Since 1998 child and adolescent psychiatrists became more important in the treatment of children with HD.
Conclusion: The data show an increase of the administrative prevalence of hyperkinetic disorder. The estimates are within the lower range of the prevalences gained by representative population-based field studies.