(Reuters Health) - More than 10 percent of U.S. children have been diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), reflecting a surge in recent years particularly among girls and minority groups, a new study finds. Over that time, diagnosis among girls jumped 55 percent from 4.7 percent in 2003 to 7.3 percent in 2011, though prevalence remained higher among boys. “The sharper increase among girls was a surprise primarily because ADHD is typically diagnosed among boys,” said study co-author Sean Cleary, a public health researcher at George Washington University in Washington, D.C. 
 
 “One possibility to explain the increasing trend among females is a greater recognition of ADHD symptoms observed (e.g. To assess shifts in diagnosis patterns over time, Cleary and co-author Kevin Collins of Mathematic Policy Research analyzed data on more than 190,000 children from U.S. surveys conducted in 2003, 2007 and 2011. The rates of diagnoses, which are based on the number of parents who reported that they had been told by a doctor that their child had ADHD, doesn’t explain why the trends have been different for different demographic groups. In particular, diagnosis among Hispanic children spiked 83 percent over the study period. “So being able to function well in school has become a bigger priority and that’s contributing to why more kids are identified.” 
 
 Whatever the reason for the skyrocketing rates, they don’t worry experts as much as children who could benefit from treatment but aren’t given the chance. Even though the data point to rising ADHD diagnosis rates, Wilens cautioned, the study based on parents’ responses to a single survey question doesn’t help answer why children were diagnosed or what treatment they may have received. While the findings, published today in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, may be received as more unnecessary medicalization of childhood, experts welcomed it as good news.
– More than one in 10 US children between the ages of 5 and 17 have been diagnosed with ADHD, according to a study published Tuesday in the Journal of Clinical Psychology. That means about 5.8 million kids have the most commonly diagnosed mental disorder for US children. The study looked at surveys of more than 190,000 kids between 2003 and 2011, Reuters reports. It found diagnosis rates rose 43% over that time to the point 12% of US children were diagnosed with ADHD in 2011. But that's a "good thing," according to Healthline. "Some people would look at that and say we’re just diagnosing too many kids,” an American Academy of Pediatrics spokesperson says. “I see that some of it is encouraging in many kids who have been under-diagnosed in the past may now be getting diagnosed.” ADHD was historically mostly diagnosed in white boys, Reuters reports. But the study found diagnosis rates for girls rose 55% between 2003 and 2011. “It is possible that female adolescents may have different forms of verbal aggression than male adolescents," study co-author Sean Clearly explains to Healthline. “It’s not particularly surprising if you have teenagers." Similarly, diagnosis rates rose for older teens (52%), Hispanic children (83%), and black children (58%). Researchers don't believe more kids actually have ADHD than they did in 2003 and are less worried about possible over-diagnosis than children who need help not getting it. According to Healthline, increases in diagnosis rates mean more kids who need medication have access to it, allowing them to do better in school.