Evaluation of İnonu University Medical Faculty students in terms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and emotion regulation difficulties

Objective: In this study, it was aimed to evaluate the Inonu University Medical Faculty students in terms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and emotion regulation difficulties. The hypothesis of the study is that the emotion regulation difficulties will be found higher in students with highly probable ADHD compared to students without ADHD. Material and Method: The study was conducted at Inonu University Turgut Ozal Medical Center between 20.10.2021 and 20.11.2021. Sociodemographic data form, Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale (ASRS) and Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS) were distributed online to the medical faculty students. Participants were grouped as highly probable ADHD (HP-ADHD), probable ADHD (P-ADHD), and without ADHD (WO-ADHD) groups according to the ASRS cut-off score. Scale scores, clinical and sociodemographic features were compared between groups. Results: It was determined that there were 76 participants in the HP-ADHD group, 239 participants in the P-ADHD group, and 237 participants in the WO-ADHD group. The groups were similar to each other in terms of age, gender, and history of physical disease. DERS total score was found to be significantly higher in the HP-ADHD group than in the P-ADHD group (p<0.001), and significantly higher in the P-ADHD group than in the WO-ADHD group (p<0.001). Conclusion: Emotion regulation difficulties are as important as core symptoms in adult ADHD. Further comprehensive studies are needed on ADHD and its clinical signs in adults. Keywords: Adult, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, emotion regulation difficulties