From the data, information was collected on the age groups, gender, socioeconomic status, and the dates of diagnosis of ADHD. The researchers found that the corona epidemic had no effect on the rates of ADHD diagnoses and that there was no significant change in the number of diagnoses during the epidemic. It is claimed in the study that it was explained that the thought that the corona virus causes attention deficit disorder is wrong, and may affect children with attention deficit disorder, who will not be diagnosed, thinking that it is apparently the effect of the virus, and not the neurodevelopmental disorder itself.
“The rumor has been circulating for several years that the corona virus causes attention deficit disorder,” explains Prof. Iris Manor, “but from all the information collected in the world medical literature and our research, no difference was found in the morbidity rate of attention deficit disorder before and after the epidemic. ADHD is a neurodevelopmental disorder, with Genetic basis and with brain changes, and not a response to virus infection.”
What, then, might explain the impression that children and teenagers are losing their ability to pay attention? According to Prof. Manor, it may be the exposure to screens and social media that causes developmental damage that may affect the ability to listen: “The children rarely make eye contact, express themselves with emojis, hardly ever read books, and are exposed to videos on Tiktok and Instagram that last a few seconds. All of these, in themselves, may impair their ability to maintain attention for a long time, and their need for immediate stimulation. However, it is not a medical attention disorder, which begins in childhood and continues throughout life. Either way, the recommendation is for any parent who is in doubt to go to a specialist for an orderly diagnosis.”