No evidence of association between HLA-DRB1 and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder

Objectives There has been a recent resurgence in interest in the role of autoimmunity in childhood neuropsychiatric disorders. Significant association between HLA-DRB1 and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in a case-control study of 31 subjects has been reported but there have been no other published studies following up these results. We attempted to replicate these findings. Methods In a well-characterized sample of 173 children with ADHD, using a fully automated sequence-specific oligonucleotide method for HLA genotyping, association between ADHD and HLA-DRB1 was tested for using the Transmission Disequilibrium Test and case-control analysis. Results Transmission Disequilibrium Test analysis yielded a chi-square of 10.694 with a simulated global P value of 0.1641 for the full sample, and a chi-square value of 11.307 with a simulated global P value of 0.1323 for the complete trios only. Conclusion There was no evidence of association of HLA-DRB1 and ADHD. (C) 2003 Lippincott Williams Wilkins.