(Estonia) 2020, 2,345 children had ADHD dx; 2024, it was 3,690, 57% increase

Jan 14, 2026, ERR: ADHD diagnoses more than triple in 5 years

https://news.err.ee/1609910224/adhd-diagnoses-more-than-triple-in-5-years 

The number of ADHD diagnoses in Estonia has surged in recent years, from nearly 3,500 in 2020 to over 12,800 in 2024, driving up medication costs.

According to data from the National Institute for Health Development (TAI), the number of ADHD diagnoses has surged in recent years. In 2020, 2,345 children aged 14 or younger were diagnosed with the condition; by 2024, that number had risen to 3,690 — a 57 percent increase.

The growth in diagnoses among adults has been even more dramatic: in 2020, ADHD was diagnosed in 1,112 people aged 15 and older, while by 2024 the number had skyrocketed to 9,121 — more than eight times higher. TAI is still compiling data for 2025.

A comparison of recent years reveals that six years ago, adult men were diagnosed with ADHD more than twice as often as women. However, that ratio has shifted over time and by 2023, the number of newly diagnosed female patients had surpassed that of men.

In the year before last, a little over 4,000 men and just over 5,000 women had received an ADHD diagnosis. Among children, doctors diagnosed nearly 2,800 boys and slightly more than 900 girls with the condition.

The Health Insurance Fund's spending on ADHD medications has also increased over the years. In 2020, covering subsidies for 2,689 children cost more than €566,000. A year later, with 3,163 children receiving support, the cost rose to over €680,000.

Adults became eligible for subsidized ADHD medications in 2023, which led to a rise in Health Insurance Fund expenditures. By the end of 2023, a total of 8,839 children and adults had received medication with the subsidy, costing the Health Insurance Fund nearly €1.39 million.

Last year, 17,236 patients in Estonia received ADHD medications, with the Health Insurance Fund spending €3.46 million. However, these figures are not final, as not all treatment invoices from the past year have been submitted yet. . . .

According to the World Health Organization, ADHD affects approximately 8 percent of children under the age of 18, occurring several times more frequently in boys than in girls. The disorder typically begins in early childhood and usually persists throughout the school years, continuing into adulthood in about one-third to one-half of cases.