ADHD & Divorce: Study Results continued...

The bright spot is, the majority did not get divorced, even though the rate is twice as high," Pelham tells WebMD. Previous research, done by others, has found that mothers of children with ADHD are three times more likely to split up with their husbands than are mothers of children without ADHD.

Another potentially bright spot: the proportion of parents who divorced after the child with ADHD turned 8 did not differ significantly.

That finding may simply mean that "people have learned to cope and deal with the situation," Pelham tells WebMD. ADHD is typically treated with medication, behavior therapy, or both.

The study is published in the October issue of the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology. The first author is Brian Wymbs, PhD, a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Pittsburgh.