Hyperactivity: diagnostic confusion.

Histories of hyperactive symptoms were evaluated for two samples of young men and women under treatment for drug or psychiatric disorders. More than one in five had shown hyperactivity but almost all of these developed pictures of other psychiatric problems, frequently the antisocial personality, by late adolescence. This picture is felt to reflect inaccurate use of hyperactive labels in difficult-to-handle children. The potential consequences of these practices are discussed.