A population study of 409 seven-year-old children in a middle-sized Swedish
town was performed. All children were examined by the same doctor and eval
uated by means of parent interview, motor examinations, and teacher reports
on behaviour in the classroom. Follow-up was carried out 8 months later. T
he rate of severe problems in the fields of attention deficit-hyperactivity
disorder (ADHD), developmental coordination disorder (DCD), and deficits i
n attention, motor control, and perception (DAMP) (the combination of ADHD
and DCD) was 6.1%, with boys being affected more frequently than girls. The
re was considerable overlap between ADHD and DCD, with about half of each d
iagnostic group also meeting criteria for the other diagnosis. Attention de
ficits at diagnosis strongly predicted attention deficits at follow-up. If
parents had noted attention deficits in the home setting, then teachers alm
ost always independently agreed that there were similar problems in the cla
ssroom. However, the reverse did not always apply. Clumsiness also showed s
triking stability over time. The diagnosis of DAMP, particularly severe DAM
P, had a stronger association with classroom dysfunction and with high Conn
ers scores than did diagnoses of ADHD or DCD. It is concluded that DAMP may
be a clinically valid diagnostic construct.