Medications for ADHD in Children

Video Transcript

"Hi, I'm Dr. David Hill and today we're talking about a topic that creates a lot of controversy and a lot of emotion; medications for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder or ADHD in children. The first question we often get is, "Does my child really need a medication?" Your child should have been thoroughly evaluated with a, ex, with a really thorough history and physical exam. Some form should be given to the parents and the teachers to fill out to learn about the child in a couple of different environments before a diagnosis of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder is made. However, in children who have a really good solid diagnosis of ADHD; we don't know of anything other than medications that helps them overcome this problem. They can go to counseling and that helps in conjunction with medications; but every study that's been done of counseling and behavioral therapy alone has shown no really significant benefit. So like it or not, we're stuck with medicines for now. The most medicines we used for ADHD are of the stimulant variety. Ritalin is probably the best known; but others include Adderall, Concerta, there are quite a few of them actually. None of these medicines is any better than any other medicine in large studies. They all work about the same. But for an individual child, any of these medicines maybe the best choice. It's up to you and your doctor to figure out which one. The thing that distinguishes the stimulant medicines for each other is not how well they work, but when they work; how long do they last after a dose; when do they have their peak effect; how long does it take the effect to taper off after the peak and how soon does it start. The manufacturers of these medications work very hard to alter their formulations so that they may start sooner or last longer or end at a further off time. You may also find that side effects differ in your child from one medicine to another. One that may cause weight loss or abdominal pain in one child maybe exactly the right choice for another child. There are some other medicines that are use for Attention Deficit Disorder. One is a type of anti-psychotic agent called Strattera. This one, unlike the stimulants, is not a substance that the FDA regulates as a scheduled substance and so it's a little easier to get a prescription for it. It doesn't work really any better or worse, any faster or slower; although you do need to use it for a longer time to see if it's working. You might see some doctors use Clonidine to help children slow down and get to sleep especially at night and you may see a variety of medicines used that we sometimes use for seizures or for psychosis. Usually in kids you have complicated or difficult to treat cases of ADHD. So remember kids with ADHD; if they have a really good diagnosis really do need some kind of medication to get better. Most medications for ADHD are stimulant medicines and it just matters which one is the right one for your child. And last, there are several other classes of medicines that your doctor may choose to use with or instead of those stimulants. Talking about medicines for ADHD, I'm Dr. David Hill."