Posted by SLS on February 16, 2013, at 12:52:56
In reply to Re: need help with new friend » lindsey75, posted by hyperfocus on February 13, 2013, at 19:45:41
> I think you could tell her with certainty that there is no med treatment for adult ADD
That's a pretty strong statement. From where does your certitude come?
I can't speak from personal experience, but I have seen stimulants and atomoxetine change the lives of several adults with ADD. Even desipramine can be of great help.
> -- only behavioral and cognitive strategies work long-term.
I have not followed these people for more than 5 years, so I can't say that their responses drug treatment will last indefinitely.
> Meds for ADD carry a ton of side-effects
That's a lot of side-effects! Some people - like me - experience no side effects at all from amphetamines. What side effects do you feel are most frequent and problematic?
I can't address the appropriateness of drug treatment for the friend. It is not my place. However, adult ADD is not usually refractory to medical treatment.
- Scott
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http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22917983
Eur Neuropsychopharmacol. 2012 Aug 20. [Epub ahead of print]Long-term efficacy and safety of treatment with stimulants and atomoxetine in adult ADHD: A review of controlled and naturalistic studies.
Fredriksen M, Halmøy A, Faraone SV, Haavik J.
Source
Division of Mental Health & Addiction, Vestfold Hospital Trust, Norway.
Abstract
Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a common disorder of childhood that often persists into adulthood. Although stimulant medications are recommended as the first-line treatment for ADHD because of their documented short-term effects in children and adults, less is known about their effects on long-term outcome in adults. Here we review the long-term efficacy and safety of the stimulant drugs methylphenidate and amphetamine, as well as the related compound atomoxetine. We performed a systematic review to identify direct and indirect effects of stimulant therapy on long-term outcome in adults. Five randomized controlled trials (RCTs), and 10 open-label extension studies of initial short-term RCTs, with total follow-up of at least 24weeks, were identified. All these RCTs found that medication was significantly more efficacious than placebo in treating ADHD in adults, and the extension studies showed that this favorable effect of medication was maintained during the open-label follow-up period. However, since the maximum duration of these pharmacological trials was 4years, we also reviewed 18 defined naturalistic longitudinal and cross-sectional studies, to provide more information about longer term functional outcomes, side effects and complications. These observational studies also showed positive correlations between early recognition of the disorder, stimulant treatment during childhood and favorable long-term outcome in adult ADHD patients. In conclusion, stimulant therapy of ADHD has long-term beneficial effects and is well tolerated. However, more longitudinal studies of long duration should be performed. In addition, the ethical issues involved in performing double blind RCTs of many years duration should be further explored.
Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. and ECNP. All rights reserved.
PMID:
22917983
[PubMed - as supplied by publisher]
Some see things as they are and ask why.
I dream of things that never were and ask why not.- George Bernard Shaw
poster:SLS
thread:1036332
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20130205/msgs/1038178.html