Drugs 'of no benefit' to hyperactive children [ADHD]

The Telegraph ^ | 11/1/2007 | Gary Cleland

[bruinbirdman]

Drugs given to thousands of hyperactive children have no long-term benefits and could in fact be stunting their development, a major study has said.

The study of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) found that, while powerful drugs such as Ritalin and Concerta resulted in short-term behavioural improvements, after three years those benefits had disappeared.

Children who took the drugs for the full three years were also found to have stunted growth, according to the Multimodal Treatment Study of Children with ADHD (MTA).

The MTA has followed 600 children in the United States with ADHD since the 1990s and has just published its latest findings. Prof William Pelham, co-author, from the University of Buffalo, said: "They weren't growing as much as other kids both in terms of their height and their weight.

"There were no beneficial effects - none. In the short run medication will help the child behave better, in the long run it won't.

"That information should be made very clear to parents."

Children with ADHD have an unusually short attention span and become easily distracted. They are over-active and restless, tend to perform poorly at school and struggle to develop social skills.

Tonight a BBC Panorama investigation will claim that 55,000 British children were prescribed ADHD drugs last year, at a cost to the NHS of £28 million.

The programme will also claim that thousands of ADHD sufferers are treated with powerful anti-psychotic drugs that can cause weight gain, diabetes and even brain damage. About 8,000 children were given drugs such as Risperdal and Zyprexa in 2005.

Dr Tim Kendall, of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, said: "A generous understanding would be to say that doctors have reached the point where they don't know what else to offer, and they haven't really got the right supports to help parents and children in difficult circumstances.

"But I think even that is no real excuse for drugs which are associated with such severe side effects."

Dr Kendall heads a team that is drawing up new guidelines for the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) for the treatment of ADHD sufferers.

He said the guidelines would focus on providing not just medication, but also support networks and parent training programmes.

"I think the important thing is that we have a comprehensive approach which doesn't just focus on one type of treatment," he added.

It is thought ADHD could affect up to five per cent of British youngsters.

One sufferer, Craig Buxton, 14, from Stoke-on-Trent, has been on medication for 10 years without his behaviour improving.

He was recently removed from his school after assaulting three teachers. His family feel they are being let down and that Craig will end up in prison if they are not given more support.

Alan Hudson, Craig's step-father, said: "As he's getting older he's getting much stronger, and who knows what he's going to do."

[BipolarBob]

It is unnatural for children to be still at that age for all day. They need to increase recess or PE time to encourage running or strenuous activity to burn calories and this will take care of itself. All my opinion of course YMMV.

[Choose Ye This Day]

Gee, nobody could have seen this one coming.

/ sarcasm

[yankeedame]

Drugs given to thousands of hyperactive children have no long-term benefits and could in fact be stunting their development, a major study has said. The study of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) found that, while powerful drugs such as Ritalin and Concerta resulted in short-term behavioural improvements, after three years those benefits had disappeared.

You know, is this wasn't coming from socialized, free, universal, government health care program reduced to exploding then benefits of maggots, leeches, and the unscrewing of every other light bulbs or so in hospitals, no surgeries for fatties or smokers, etc. I might take this report a little more seriously.

All I can see now is them pouring over stacks of papers and thinking: "How can we cut services and yet still make 'em think we care about them?"

[secretagent]

Kiddie cocaine.

[Ronin]

This is what I call a total “no brainer”. I have been appalled for the longest time about the distribution of these powerful drugs to kids that are just being kids.

Noisy, active, bouncy, rambunctious kids.

[luckystarmom]

We’ve just started to give my daughter anti-seizure medication. We do not want to give her any medication because you never know what the long term affects are. However, she has brain damage, she just had a grand mal seizure, and she had an abnormal EEG. We have to give her the medication.

With ADHD, there are a lot of other options than medication, but I see parents quickly jumping on the medication bandwagon. I think a few kids probably do need it, but not as many as are prescribed.

[rb22982]

I’ve seen it first hand with my brother in the 90s. They worked for about a year with him and then stopped. Plus they made him VERY tempermental coming off the effects. I’ve long thought from personal experience what this study reports.

[Viking2002]

"There were no beneficial effects - none. In the short run medication will help the child behave better, in the long run it won't. That information should be made very clear to parents."

This is the definitive 'NO SHIT' statement of the week. My stepdaughter was on Ritalin, Wellbutrin, Adderal, and a concert of other drugs for quite a few years. ADD, ADHD, and all those other acronyms that the nutcrackers like to hang on people. It got to the point where her mother and I lost any sort of faith in them, and she cut them off - cold turkey. Within a week, there was a marked improvement in her demeanor, and shortly thereafter, her ability to focus on something lucidly for a period of time was amazing. I lived in the hell that pharmacopic cult foisted upon us - it's been nothing more than the Big Brother to Algore's Global Whining hysteria.

[TornadoAlley3]

[highimpact]

Are you suggesting that my 8 y/o son shouldn’t take heavy psychotropic drugs to combat restlessness and boredom? But, but, but....the government experts said the drugs will just calm him down and allow him to focus!

Thirty years ago, we used to have four recesses a day. We’d play tackle football and smear the q**er. We played real baseball with a real hardball and real bats. We played tag and we raced. We played baseball, soccer, four-square, and tetherball. Occasionally, somebody would get a bloody nose or a scraped knee, but I don’t remember anybody filing a lawsuit. We need to get back to the basics. Work hard, play hard, relax, and repeat.

[GovernmentShrinker]

Also get rid of all the stupid homework. Research has been unable to find any correlation between homework and academic achievement before the high school level, and yet elementary school children continue to be sent home after a long day of sitting, with piles of homework that they and their parents are convinced they must sit and do. Time magazine ran an article on this a few years back, and interviewed one father who was a former teacher himself, and who had told his child’s school officials point blank that his child would not be doing any homework assignments. We need more of that attitude from parents.

[hinckley buzzard]

There are numerous environmental adaptations that schools could initiate which would help with the ADD/ADHD problem. Unfortunately, for the educrats, the schools would then mightily resemble the schools prior to the 60's, when the idiot enthusiasts in the education colleges began to go off the deep end.

Stimulant medications have been remarkably effective with appropriately-diagnosed(the key to why the posted article is BS--no controls) hyperactive kids since before WW II. Any parent who has such a child should disregard the ignorant comments of the usual gibbering idiots here; learn about the disorder and its treatment; and find a competent physician. Don't deny your child possible successful treatment just because some ignoramus says it is all a scam. It isn't.

[lesser_satan]

That’s because “hyperactive children” is redundant.

[MrB]

ADHD:

Absent Dad/Husband Disorder

[Conservativegreatgrandma]

Have you investigated a ketonic diet?

[vpintheak]

The best medicine for these children is a stable family with both parents and several, as many as it takes, butt whoopings. Those kids will come around, I gaurantee it.

[neverdem]

thanks, bfl

[tracer]

No surprise re: inhibition of growth and development. Methylphenidine and other meds used in the treatment of ADHD are potent appetite suppressants.

A newer medication, Focalin, has less of an anorectric effect, but it has not been approved for use in childhhood ADD or ADHD. A variety of coping skills can be taught to improve the executive function of individuals with ADD or ADHD, but most children afflicted with disorder could never go on to complete rigid, rote, and detail-intensive educational pursuits such those leading to careers as physicians and lawyers, but then, so what??

One afflicted with ADD (which usually is the course of things as an ADD-er gets older) can complete a difficult course of study at the doctoral and post-doctoral levels in the sciences and even do so at top-drawer research universities and research centers. I know this because I did so, although I was diagnosed as having ADD until I was 50 y.o.

I've done reasonably well in life, quite largely due to prayers answered in the form of blessings from the Lord, and have done even better after starting to take carefully selected medications.

Methylphenidate (Ritalin) in all of its formulations became less effective, but I have found the advanced-generation medication, Focalin, to be ideal with respect to its pharmacological properties. One of my regrets is that, had I know that I have ADD I would have avoided companies and positions that did not permit flexibility re: time and work activities. I am thriving and prospering while doing things I enjoy and at which I excel after having retired from the Feral Gummint.

I sometimes refer to myself as "Timex:" I took a licking but have kept on ticking." My childhood school years through my undergraduate degree was miserable, and although I continue to struggle against longstanding "baggage," I thank the Lord several times a day for preserving me and keeping me off of a seat on a railroad track.

If any of you are affected by ADD or ADHD, please feel free to contact me via FReepmail. I may be able to be of help to you in your struggle or that of a loved one or friend.......

[luckystarmom]

Yep. It’s a last resort for seizures that are not under control. It’s very risky and needs very close observation from a medical team. In fact, they have to be in the hospital for at least 24 hours when they start the diet.

Typically, people go on the diet if medications are not working.

We’re not there yet.

[neverdem]

Stimulant medications have been remarkably effective with appropriately-diagnosed(the key to why the posted article is BS--no controls) hyperactive kids since before WW II.

Read the abstract from the first link. They had controls.

Effects of stimulant medication on growth rates across 3 years in the MTA follow-up.

Delinquent behavior and emerging substance use in the MTA at 36 months: prevalence, course, and treatment effects.

Academic Achievement Over 8 Years Among Children Who Met Modified Criteria for Attention-deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder at 4-6 Years of Age.

Secondary evaluations of MTA 36-month outcomes: propensity score and growth mixture model analyses.

3-year follow-up of the NIMH MTA study.

[bvw]

Better late that never, still — damn the pushers.

[Always Independent]

Sometimes it goes beyond the things a good family life can provide. And the Butt whoopings. Tried that and only works for so long. My oldest has struggled with ADD all throught his school years. He is a senior now. We tried the various drugs that were out there and ther may be some truth to the stunted growth. Although some of them seemd to have helped, I didn’t like the thought of him taking the meds everday. We took him off these drugs after about a year of use. We found an herbal supplement called Mindcare that has no side effects other than a horrible taste when you take it But it actually seems to help him stay focused. Football and Tae Kwon Do also helped alot.

[Myrddin]

Common ground again :-) My oldest and youngest sons have ADD. The oldest also has severe heart problems that required 4 open heart surgeries to correct a severe sub-aortic stenosis. Over time, the back pressure from the stenosis damaged the mitral and aortic valves. Those have been replaced with metal valves. The tricuspid was damaged by the pacemaker leads, thus was banded as a repair on the 3rd surgery.

My oldest son was kicked out of kindergarten on the 2nd day of school. It wasn't until after his first surgery that we could even try Ritalin to deal with the hyperactivity. It helped a little, but not enough to warrant continuation. Cylert didn't help at all. We opted to line him up with special ed classes prepared to handle the problem. He has completed half of his work toward a BS in geology, but just doesn't have the capacity to handle more than one or two classes at a time. Completing his degree is going to be exorbitantly expensive due to the fee schedules oriented to people taking a more standard 16 units per semester. At 27 he is still somewhat emotionally immature. He is still inattentive. His is currently working as a cashier at Deseret Industries. A week of consecutive "zero out" events on his till is a big deal for him. He just passed his driver's license written exam too. It's a supervised license. He really needs a "safety" driver in place to augment his attention issues.

I suspect I'm also somewhat an ADD case myself. My mom was always nagging me to "finish" things. That prompted me to make lists of things that need to be finished, then ravenously consume the work on my list.

My youngest son hasn't faired as well. He was in special ed in San Diego too. When we moved to Idaho, the school system failed him in a big way. He dropped out in 8th grade. I'm trying to get him motivated to complete the GED so he is marketable. He says the special ed classes in San Diego went over the same narrow range of material, so he has much work to catch up with the curriculum of the "normal" students.

[Tarpon]

What did we ever do before all these designer drugs were available. I would never allow my kids to take this mind altering crap. This is very likely the cause of the current epidemic outbreak of BDS ...

[half-cajun]

That’s hogwash.

[RedRightReturn]

“ADHD:

Absent Dad/Husband Disorder”

Wow! Someday I hope to be as perfectly perfect as you.

Until then and unless you have a child with ADHD and have struggled daily with the myriad issues that accompany this condition, despite the enormity of love and attention and encouragement you can provide to your blessed child, who is graciously gifted from God, then kindly have a seat over in the corner there and SHUT THE EFF UP!!

Oh, and while there, please commit my tagline to memory.

God Bless!

[tracer]

You may do well to seek a second opinion. Your son may have a co-morbid neurodeficit(s) that could account for his obvious difficulties re: executive function. It also would be wise to rule out co-morbid personality (e.g. oppositional-defiant disorder or borderline personality disorder) or other psychological disorders (especially uni-or bi-polar depression).

A brain MRI and PET scan should be considered as well to rule out organic disorders. I'm not a physician but a doctoral level biomedical scientist who has had to evolve into the areas of neurology, psychiatry, and substance abuse.

And I did stay at a Holiday Inn. 8~)

It sounds that he is afflicted well beyond that which is typical for an ADDer. Effective intervention, pharmacologic and/or psychotherapeutic may spare you all a lot of unnecessary hardship.

My heart goes out to you, your son, and your family, brother. I'm glad that he's working at DI. He likely knows a friend of mine (whose dad also is a friend). His family moved from our ward a few years back, and the lad had a benign brain tumor that was removed/irradiated but left him with moderate cognitive deficits that are more than offset by his great Christ-like spirit and his testimony of the Gospel.

He also served an honorable mission but I cannot recall where he served -- I have seen dozens and dozens of missionaries go out to serve around the globe and return home again and after more than 30 years most of them seem to blend together in my memory, such as it is. 8~)

I can provide you with the names of some medical specialists in your general area and beyond (a couple of them are good friends of mine) or possibly in the DC area or elsewhere. We could work out the practical details through my ward and stake and otherwise if necessary. Please stay in touch -- probably best by FReepmail....

[tracer]

I answered your post before reading it through. You would do well to explore other possible sources for your younger son’s condition. I’ll keep you all in my fasting and prayers and hope that those from such as I do not end up being a jinx (just kidding, of course)....

[tracer]

See? My ADD at work....

[GOPJ]

Lots of creepy doctors making a killing on this stuff..

[NavyCanDo]

I was among the skeptics of ADHD, and one of those who believed if the parent would just apply the board of education to their seat of knowledge they could cure the kid. See post #11. But my 6-year old son most definitely has ADHD, and despite some peoples beliefs it is not something that can be beaten out of a child. I have learned in a short time that a kid with ADHD is not the same as a kid that is a spoiled brat. Far from it, my child is the sweetest kid who is very generous to others, fun loving, and always happy. I have been working with him at home with that Total Transformation program that you hear advertised on the radio, and it does seem to have helped at home - but at school I have been pulled aside by the 3 times so far by his kindergarten teacher this year, to tell me is not listening to simple directions given in class. A typical incident would be her giving directions for the students to grab a pencil and eraser and gather in a circle on the mat. He will join the other kids on the mat, but be the only one who did not grab the pencil and eraser. I’m at wit’s end, but I don’t believe in giving them drugs, unless they are a danger to them selves or others, which he’s not.

[Myrddin]

I didn't indulge my youngest son in any kind of drug therapy for his ADD either. I have a 20 year old who only finished 8th grade. Before rejecting the drug approach entirely, you might try a controlled test of his academic performance with and without the drugs. The absence of overt hyperactivity doesn't mean the kid isn't having problems paying attention to the learning activities in the classroom. It's not about danger. It's about whether your child is actually learning something in class. I have only a single data point when my son brought home a perfect score on a math test after "snitching" a Ritalin tablet from a classmate. He had never done that before or since. By the time I had that data point, he was days from being permanently booted out of the public school system.