ADHD Drug Ritalin® Reviewed by the Cochrane Library

Activist Post

Interrupt Your Regularly Scheduled Program

 

November 28, 2015

By Catherine J. Frompovich

This is a “heads up” and “take notice” recommendation for parents whose children routinely are taking the most frequently prescribed ADHD prescription drug Ritalin®.

Late in November of 2015, the prestigious Cochrane Library issued its report “Benefits and harms of methylphenidate for children and adolescents with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)”, which you may want to know about and consider seriously.

One of the conclusions the authors of that report came up with is that “Better designed trials are needed to assess the benefits of methylphenidate [Ritalin®].”

Rather than my parsing the report, I think it would be wise for parents of ADHD children, who have questions, to print that Cochrane report, study it carefully, and discuss it with your child’s managing physician who prescribed the drug.

 

Why do I say that? Well, under “Main Results,” the findings in Primary and Secondary Outcomes may be of particular interest to you, including the drug’s impacts relative to your child/children, especially “teacher-rated ADHD symptoms.”

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