[Adult psychiatry does not recognize child neuropsychiatric disorders. A registry study shows discrepancy between expected and real number of cases].

To identify the group of patients with presumed special needs in adult psychiatry, a list survey was made covering 11 months of diagnostic work in adult psychiatry with a catchment area of 213,000 inhabitants. The survey was made in the urban setting of Gothenburg. During the period of observation, 6,386 patients were diagnosed. Among them 156 (2.4%) were diagnosed with a neuropsychiatric diagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, autism spectrum disorders, disorders associated with Tourette's syndrome or mental retardation. The adult psychiatric hospital care does not recognize child neuropsychiatric disorders in the patient population by the frequency the disorders presumably appear. This is especially clear in the group of patients with a combination of narcotic substance abuse and psychiatric symptoms.