medication: recent publications

December 8, 2023The nationwide shortage of Adderall (amphetamine mixed salts) has triggered a domino effect. Patients are now struggling to fill prescriptions for other stimulant medications used to treat ADHD, including the generic equivalents of Vyvanse and Ritalin.Some drug manufacturers blame the shortage on production quotas for stimulant medications, which are classified as Schedule II controlled substances, set by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).

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July 15, 2023Prescription stimulant medication use for the treatment of ADHD does not increase adolescents’ risk for illicit drug use as young adults; however, adolescents who divert and/or misuse stimulants are 2.5 times more likely to use cocaine or methamphetamine during young adulthood, according to a new study published in the journal JAMA Open Network.1The University of Michigan study of 5,034 U.S. high school seniors found that adolescents with ADHD who used stimulant therapy were no more likely to use cocaine and methamphetamine at ages 19 to 24 than their neurotypical peers.

July 10, 2023Distribution of amphetamine-based prescription medications varies considerably across the U.S., according to data obtained from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) for 2019 that charted distribution of amphetamine, a common ADHD medication, and methamphetamine. The misuse of methamphetamine is a major public health concern; however, amphetamines play a mainstream therapeutic role in the effective treatment of ADHD. Stigmatization, differences in accessibility, and initiatives like the Montana Meth Project likely contribute to regional disparities in accessibility for both medications.1The DEA’s Automation of Reports and Consolidated Orders System (ARCOS) was used to collect per capita drug weight distribution data (milligrams per 1,000 people) for prescription methamphetamine and amphetamine in a regional analysis published by the Journal of Attention Disorders.

Not available May 11? Don’t worry. Register now and we’ll send you the replay link to watch at your convenience.Pregnancy is magical and excruciating.

June 14, 2022Nationwide, 23.6% of children diagnosed with ADHD receive no ADHD-specific treatment, according to a new U.S. study analyzing parent responses published in the Journal of Attention Disorders1.

May 24, 2022It took just 30 minutes for Allison, 31, to receive a dual diagnosis of ADHD and anxiety from a psychotherapist on Cerebral. She joined the mental health subscription platform during the pandemic because the wait time to see an in-person clinician for an ADHD evaluation was long — too long for the mother of three children, two preschoolers and one 10-year-old with ADHD. Within one week of her diagnosis, a prescription for the antidepressant Wellbutrin was mailed directly to her home in Illinois.

May 18, 2022ADHD medication use may decrease the risk for long-term unemployment among adults with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, according to a recent study published in JAMA Open Network.1 The study found the association between pharmacological treatment and decreased risk of unemployment to be significantly stronger among women.Previous research has shown that adults with ADHD face an increased risk for unemployment.2, 3, 4 Pharmacological treatments have proven effective in reducing core ADHD symptoms such as difficulty concentrating, poor planning, lack of organization, self-regulation deficits, forgetfulness, and impulsivity.5, 6“However, less is known about the extent to which pharmacological treatment for ADHD is associated with reductions in unemployment rates,” the researchers wrote. “This is a critical limitation, because long-term unemployment is associated with economic difficulties, worse mental and physical health, and higher mortality rates.”Researchers sought to determine whether taking medication for ADHD was associated with a lower unemployment rate among working-age adults.

March 16, 2022More than a quarter of teens who overdosed on medications used to treat anxiety and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) had received a recent medical prescription for benzodiazepines or psychostimulants, according to a new study published in Pediatrics. 1For the study, researchers studied data from the commercial claims database on privately insured youth aged 15 to 24 who overdosed on benzodiazepines or stimulants in emergency rooms between January 1, 2016, and December 31, 2018.

Not available April 13? Don’t worry. Register now and we’ll send you the replay link to watch at your convenience.ADHD medication has been the cornerstone of ADHD treatment since the condition was first recognized more than a century ago. The stimulants and the alpha agonists are some of the most effective treatments in medicine and, if properly fine-tuned, they have virtually no side effects.Yet the vast majority of adults who start ADHD medication stop taking it within a year.

 I’m often asked why I need to take medication for my depression. Questions like, “Why can’t you just think about happy things to make your depression go away? ” or “What do pills do to your brain that diet and exercise can’t fix? ” and “Why take happy pills if you’re still unhappy? ”Granted, these are valid questions, yet my initial reaction, after rolling my eyes and taking a deep breath, is to get defensive. My impulse is to answer with “Would you ask someone who suffers from chronic migraines why they use medication to ease their symptoms? ”  I make every effort to keep my patience in check because I know it’s so difficult to understand depression if you’ve never had it.

January 20, 2021Just 19% of American youth diagnosed with ADHD are receiving medication treatment, according to a review and meta-analysis published in The Journal of Attention Disorders.1 Findings from the study suggest that, for every overtreated or improperly treated American youth, there are three more undertreated youths with ADHD.The study rose from a debate over whether pharmacological treatment for youths with ADHD is overused or underused in the U.S. Researchers screened more than 25,000 potentially relevant studies, and retained 36 studies of 104,305 individuals.

needs the medications, she despises taking any kind of medication! I was reminded of a friend of mine who had been doing fairly well on her medications when, all of a sudden, she started missing doses. Her health deteriorated very quickly, and she ended up needing to be involuntarily hospitalized for over a month.

ADHD treatment — combining stimulant medication with directive cognitive behavioral therapy — has been accepted as the gold standard of ADHD treatment for decades. Despite this, the popular press still questions the inclusion of medication as equal with therapy, leaving many parents somewhere between bewildered and opposed to using it with their kids.

ADHD medication chart with your doctor to aid the process of finding the treatment solution that best manages symptoms for yourself or your child. This ADHD medication list is part of ADDitude’s 5-part “Ages & Stages” series exploring common ADHD-related challenges through the lifecycle, along with strategies and treatments for each. Access more articles in the series here:Download the Full Ages & Stages of ADHD BookletSUPPORT ADDITUDE Thank you for reading ADDitude.

July 22, 2021The new stimulant ADHD medication AZSTARYS is now available for the treatment of ADHD symptoms in patients aged 6 years and older. A once-daily methylphenidate in capsule form, AZSTARYS comprises 70% extended-release serdexmethylphenidate and dexmethylphenidate with 30% immediate-release dexmethylphenidate.AZSTARYS was approved by the FDA earlier this year, following a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, phase 3 study of 150 children aged 6 to 12 years who had been diagnosed with ADHD.

What exactly does this mean? What are our options? Where do we go from here?ADDitude surveyed its community about the important questions you want, and need, answered after you or your child receives an ADHD diagnosis. We asked experts to provide insights and advice to clear up confusion and illuminate a clear path forward.This is the most common question parents and adults ask.

July 9, 2021Nearly one-third of college students reported misuse of prescription stimulant medication, with significantly higher rates of misuse reported among male participants and young adults with ADHD, according to a new Journal of Attention Disorders study.1Researchers studied 144 participants, all students in their fourth year of the Trajectories Related to ADHD in College (TRAC) project, a 5-year longitudinal investigation into the functional trajectories of college students with ADHD relative to those without ADHD.Half of college students with ADHD reported misusing prescription stimulants compared to 19.6% of those without ADHD.

June 11, 2021Treatment with delayed-release and extended-release methylphenidate (DR/ER-MPH) led to clinically meaningful improvements in functional impairment in children with ADHD compared to placebo. This study, which demonstrated significant improvements in before- and after-school impairments, was published in the Journal of Attention Disorders and funded by Ironshore Pharmaceuticals, maker of Jornay PM, an ER-MPH taken at night.1The data source for this study was a post hoc analysis based on data from a randomized, double-blind, multi-center, placebo-controlled trial of DR/ER-MPH in 161 children with diagnosed ADHD.

June 7, 2021Suicidality in children with hyperactivity, oppositional defiant disorder (ODD), and other behavioral disorders may be decreased by ADHD medication. This research from the Lifespan Brain Institute (LiBI) of Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) and the University of Pennsylvania was published in JAMA Network Open.1Researchers used data from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study, the largest long-term study of brain development and health in the United States.

– JulieThe dilemma this mom describes is common. Parents everywhere struggle with their children over taking medication for ADHD, in itself a sometimes complex, emotionally fraught deliberation.

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ADHD medication for the first time or when a clinician recommends a new drug or dosage:Here, ADHD specialist William Dodson, M.D., answers 14 of the most common questions about ADHD medication from caregivers and from adults with ADD.Stimulant ADHD medications are among the most effective treatments in all of medicine. They literally “stimulate” the brain to produce more norepinephrine and dopamine — the key neurotransmitters deficient in patients with ADHD.The FDA has approved 29 stimulant medications for treating ADHD in the U.S.

ADHDMomHi ADHDMom:You are not alone! Juggling a daily medical to-do list along with home and family responsibilities can overwhelm even the most organized person. Though you might be struggling now, I believe you can create systems and strategies that may help streamline your health management.

April 7, 2021Qelbree, a new nonstimulant medication for ADHD, has received FDA approval for treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in patients 6 to 17 years of age. Qelbree is the first nonstimulant ADHD medication to receive FDA approval for use in children in more than a decade.

March 5, 2021A new ADHD medication has gained approved from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

December 18, 2020The prestigious New England Journal of Medicine recently dedicated significant and noteworthy space to a research review of the pharmacologic treatment for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD or ADD)1 from Samuele Cortese, M.D., Ph.D. In the NEJM‘s September issue, Dr.

FROM OUR SPONSORCollege can be stressful and overwhelming, especially now if your routine has changed due to COVID-19. If you are a college student with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), you have a responsibility to make sure you use and store your prescription stimulant medications safely – whether you are taking classes online, attending classes in-person on campus, or coming home for winter break.

Q: “I live full time in my RV and travel the country.  My residency is in Vermont, but I’m presently residing in Arizona and it seems I need to become a resident of Arizona to get a prescription — at least at some clinics. Given that my ADHD medication is a controlled substance, I can’t get a script from my PCP back in Vermont because it requires a face-to-face appointment. Do you have any advice for long-term travelers or college students with ADHD who need to get their prescriptions while away from home?” — MichaelDear Michael,The short answer is that the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) rules changed permanently in March 2020 and, so long as the initial evaluation was done face-to-face, your original prescriber can continue to

“How can I tell if the ADHD medication is working?”It’s a common and understandable question, especially for those newly diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD or ADD). Gauging whether a medication is working as well as it should, or whether it’s the right medication at all, requires consistent self-appraisal and ongoing communication with your clinician regarding symptom control — or lack thereof.

September 15, 2020New research1 suggests that two novel types of amphetamines may effectively treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD or ADD) in adults: SHP465 mixed amphetamine salts (MAS) and AR19 fast-release amphetamine sulfate. The findings were announced at the Psych Congress Virtual Experience from September 11 to 13.The investigational stimulant AR19 is a pellets-in-capsule, fast-release amphetamine sulfate with physical and chemical barriers designed to prevent abuse by snorting, smoking, and intravenous injection.

Sleep problems, such as insomnia, are a common side effect associated with ADHD medications, especially stimulants. In other words, ADHD symptoms and the first-line interventions to treat those symptoms both elevate an individual’s risk for poor sleep.In their work to achieve ADHD symptom reduction with minimal side effects, clinicians should titrate while evaluating a patient’s environmental and familial conditions, screen for primary sleep disorders, and, throughout treatment initiation and maintenance, encourage good sleep hygiene.

1. Pursue a 90-day mail-order prescription: If you have prescription drug coverage from an insurance company, ask your physician to write a script for a 90-day mail-order supply of your ADHD medication to save you from running to the pharmacy every 30 days.

June 23, 2020Nearly 79% of White children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) take medication to manage their symptoms, following a thorough diagnosis and prescription by a medical provider. Among African American children with ADHD, this number is only 27.3% — and the rate of medication discontinuation is comparatively higher as well.

May 21, 2020

The issue of medication for children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) — more than with any other condition that I treat — is controversial and murky. For parents, the question of adding medication to their child’s treatment plan is one that weighs heavily. They research the pros and cons of ADHD medication, but their findings are colored by feelings of guilt and fear of judgement from others. It is not a black-and-white decision for most caregivers.

Medications for ADHD are among the safest and most effective treatments in medicine. So why do so many people stop taking them, and what can be done to prevent this? Little research has been done on why people do not stick with ADHD treatments. The research we do have, however, is consistent: The most effective thing we can do is check in with clinicians more often — in person or via a telemedicine appointment. Though expensive and time-consuming, this solution is the best insurance that your investment in getting a diagnosis and effective treatment will pay off.