ADHD drug ‘does not stunt growth’ in kids: study
International researchers also found no effect on psychiatric or neurological symptoms for up to two years of treatment
Long-term methylphenidate use in children with ADHD is safe and does not impair growth or development, a large real-world study shows.
The international researchers had previously reported a “slight growth deficit” in young patients prescribed the drug, but have now ruled out such an effect.
The team — which included paediatric psychiatrist Professor David Coghill, from the Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne — also found no effect on psychiatric or neurological symptoms for up to two years of treatment.
The multicentre longitudinal study recruited 1147 patients with ADHD — 756 of whom were initiated on methylphenidate — plus 263 patients in a control group without ADHD.
