Andrea Spencer, MD, from Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago received a $3.8 million, five-year grant from the National Institute of Mental Health to investigate the intersection of racism and ADHD in driving increased suicidality in young Black children (6-11 years of age). The study also aims to identify protective factors that lower the risk of suicide in these kids, and inform new guidelines on suicide prevention and risk reduction.

Over the past two decades, suicide rates have been rising among school-age Black children, despite decreasing rates among White children of the same age. Black school-age children report suicidal thoughts and behavior more frequently than their White peers and are twice as likely to die from suicide. ADHD is more common than depression in this age group and it is the leading risk factor for suicidality in pre-adolescents.

“ADHD is the strongest psychiatric risk factor for suicidality in young Black kids due to impulsivity, emotion dysregulation, school failure, peer problems, family conflict, and demoralization,” explained Dr. Spencer, Vice Chair for Research in the Pritzker Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health at Lurie Children’s and Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. “Black children also may face a disproportionate impact from ADHD-related risk for suicidality due to structural and interpersonal racism. They often face disciplinary measures, exclusion and negativity instead of receiving support and treatment for ADHD, and in this context may develop negative self-image and hopelessness, which can lead to suicidal thinking and behavior and in rare case, suicide.”

Dr. Spencer and colleagues will partner with Alliance Chicago to recruit 320 Black kids with ADHD to participate in the study. The children and their families will be evaluated at least every six months for two years to track treatment details and measures of suicidality, interpersonal discrimination, family cohesion, cultural pride and school climate. The child opportunity index, which is based on census data and measures access to neighborhood resources, will be used as a proxy for structural racism.

“The current suicide screening recommendations are for children who are 10 or older, but younger children can be suicidal as well, and too often they go unrecognized,” said Dr. Spencer. “We hope that data from our study will provide support for earlier screening, especially for Black kids with ADHD. We also hope to inform new policy and school-based recommendations to prevent suicide in these children.”

Study Co-Investigators from Lurie Children’s include Nia Heard-Garris, MD, MBA, MSc, Audrey Brewer, MD, MPH, and Amanda Burnside, PhD.

Research at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago is conducted through Stanley Manne Children’s Research Institute, which is focused on improving child health, transforming pediatric medicine and ensuring healthier futures through the relentless pursuit of knowledge. Lurie Children’s is a nonprofit organization committed to providing access to exceptional care for every child. It is ranked as one of the nation’s top children’s hospitals by U.S. News & World Report. Lurie Children’s is the pediatric training ground for Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.