Neurodevelopmental Disorders

Neurodevelopmental disorders are conditions that primarily affect neurological development, causing intellectual disability and delayed development of speech and motor skills, such as talking and walking. Neurodevelopmental disorders, such as autism spectrum disorder, appear early in childhood development, vary in severity, and can affect communication and social interaction. Other examples of neurodevelopmental disorders include attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), cerebral palsy, learning disabilities, conduct disorders, and impairments in vision and hearing.

This page provides data points and curated searches from OMH’s Knowledge Center library catalog related to neurodevelopmental disorders within minority and tribal populations in the United States and its territories. The number of catalog records for each topic reflect the search results at the time of this page’s latest update.

Autism

According to the CDC, people with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) “often have problems with social communication and interaction, and restricted or repetitive behaviors or interests. People with ASD may also have different ways of learning, moving, or paying attention.”1 According to a report in the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR), 2020 estimates of ASD prevalence across racial and ethnic groups varied, with 24.3 diagnoses per 1000 eight-year-old white children, 29.3 diagnoses per 1000 eight-year-old Black children, 31.6 diagnoses per 1000 eight-year-old Hispanic children, and 33.4 diagnoses per 1000 eight-year-old Asian/Pacific Islander children.2

This search focuses on ASD within racial and ethnic minority populations.

ADHD

According to the CDC, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is “one of the most common neurodevelopmental disorders of childhood” and “often lasts into adulthood. Children with ADHD may have trouble paying attention, controlling impulsive behaviors (may act without thinking about what the result will be), or be overly active.”3

According to the CDC, survey data from 2022 shows that approximately 11.4% of U.S. children aged 3-17 have been diagnosed with ADHD. Estimates vary by race and ethnicity. About 12% of Black and white children have been diagnosed with ADHD, compared to about 10% of American Indian/Alaska Native children, 6% of Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander children, and 4% of Asian children.4

This search focuses on ADHD within racial and ethnic minority populations.

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1 CDC. (2024). Signs and Symptoms of Autism Spectrum Disorder. Retrieved September 23, 2025, from https://www.cdc.gov/autism/signs-symptoms/index.html (Back to footnote)

2 Maenner, M. J., Warren, Z., Williams, A. R., Amoakohene, E., Bakian, A. V., Bilder, D. A., Durkin, M. S., Fitzgerald, R. T., Furnier, S. M., Hughes, M. M., Ladd-Acosta, C. M., McArthur, D., Pas, E. T., Salinas, A., Vehorn, A., & Williams, S. (2023). Prevalence and Characteristics of Autism Spectrum Disorder Among Children Aged 8 years—Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring Network, 11 sites, United States, 2020. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report: Surveillance Summaries, 72(2), 1–14. https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/72/ss/ss7202a1.htm (Back to footnote)

3 CDC. (2024). About ADHD. Retrieved September 23, 2025, from https://www.cdc.gov/adhd/about/index.html (Back to footnote)

4CDC. (2024). Data and Statistics About ADHD. Retrieved September 23, 2025, from https://www.cdc.gov/adhd/data/index.html (Back to footnote)