ADHD Drugs May Cause Sudden Death
Some disturbing new evidence is coming to light about the stimulant drugs, such as Ritalin, used to treat kids with ADHD. In a small number of children, the drugs have caused sudden death; in fact, kids treated with these drugs are seven times more likely to die suddenly than kids who are not.
Madelyn Gould, a professor of clinical epidemiology at Columbia University/NewYork State Psychiatric Institute, was asked by the FDA to look at the safety of ADHD drugs after some reports of deaths started coming in. She examined the death records of 1,128 children from 1985 to 1996 and found those taking stimulants drugs were much more likely to die.
However, Gould herself doesn’t recommend taking children off the drugs; instead, she suggests that parents make sure their pediatricians thoroughly screen their children for cardiovascular abnormalities before putting them on the drugs. Doctors should take a full family history and do additional screening if the child has risk factors for heart disease. They should also be monitored regularly to check for any alarming increases in blood pressure.
Even if the risk is small, it’s pretty scary. But as someone who’s lived with untreated ADD, it really affected my performance in school and can make even day to day life as an adult more difficult than it has to be. It’s just another tough choice we have to weigh as parents – don’t treat something that can very negatively affect our kids, or treat it but worry about the higher risk. Parents of kids with ADD or ADHD, what do you think? Are there other things you’ve tried that work or don’t work as well?
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Tags: adhd, cardiovascular risk factors, drugs, health, ritalin, stimulant drugs, sudden death
3 Comments
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ADHD Drugs May Cause Sudden Death | Strollerderby | Medic Blog commented on Jun 17 09 at 9:49 pmAli commented on Jun 18 09 at 1:37 pmHome schooling, more physical activity and less sitting for hours worked for us. I wont give myself speed more less my children.
Sheri commented on Jun 18 09 at 2:47 pmWe have a doctor who knows of all the risks and not only educates us but also requires our sons to be checked out every three months.
We also work with schedules, are very structured, and allow plenty of time for physical activity.
All of these things have done wonders with my boy’s behavior and impulse control. Including the meds. I know that there will be a number of people who disagree with using meds (Ali, I guess I will never be the perfect mother of angelic non-medicated children like you), but we go to the best doctors in our area. And my kids are fine.
