![]() The remaining 24 children (12%) were switched to either another medication or another treatment. Kids who started at a low dose were most likely (61%) to need an increase, while those who started high dose were most likely to stay at the same dose (33%) or reduce the dose (37%). But another 36 (18%) had their dosage reduced to avoid negative side effects, and (29%) were still taking the same dosage. The average increase per unit of body weight was 12.4%. A 2001 analysis of the data found that of the 198 children who were taking methylphenidate at the end of the titration period, 81 (41%) had their dose increased to maintain effectiveness. But over the 13 following months, many of the children had their dosage modified to continue to get the full benefit of the medication. In the largest long-term study of ADHD treatments called the MTA study (Multimodal Treatment Study of Children with ADHD, the first month of the study was devoted to titration-adjusting the dose until they had arrived at the optimal dose for each child. While the dose increases are modest, they are not just a result of children growing. But in other kids the medication doesn’t work as well after the first few months, and they need an increase in dosage to continue getting the same results. For many children the same dose (adjusted for growth) continues to work for many years. ![]() This is a subject of disagreement among clinicians and researchers. But it could result, researchers note in their conclusion, in the medication not working as well as it had to reduce symptoms over the long run.ĭoes medication become less effective over time? How long that change might last is not clear, as the level of transporters in the brain fluctuates. This suggests that the increase of dopamine stimulated by the medication may have prompted the brain to develop more dopamine transmitters to clear it away. The studies showed an increase in the density of dopamine transporters-those molecules that take dopamine out of action-in the brain after treatment. In 2013 they compared the brains of kids with ADHD before and after a year of treatment with stimulant medications. In recent years Nora Volkow, the director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, and her colleagues have done a number of imaging studies to better understand how ADHD, and the medication used to treat it, affect the brain. In over 50 years of using stimulant medications to counteract the symptoms of ADHD, and hundreds of studies, no negative effects of taking the medication over a period of years have been observed. If this happens, it likely means your child will have to adjust their dose. There’s some debate about whether the medication might start to work less well over time. Some teens with ADHD can be more prone to drug abuse, so if your teen has a history of misusing drugs, that’s something to consider.ĭoctors haven’t seen any negative long-term effects from using ADHD meds. But they can become addictive if someone takes much more than they’re prescribed. ![]() If they’re taking the lowest dose they get results from and are still feeling off, it’s time to try a different medication.Īt the doses a doctor would give them, ADHD meds are not addictive. If your child is grumpy and tearful or seems like a zombie, that’s a sign their dose is too high. Stimulants raise the level of dopamine in the brain to where they’d be for someone without ADHD.ĪDHD meds shouldn’t change your child’s personality. When a child has ADHD, their brain has an issue making and using a chemical called dopamine. Most ADHD medications, like Adderall and Ritalin, are a kind of stimulant. ![]()
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