Medication can help people newly diagnosed with ADHD to reduce their risk of substance misuse, suicidal behaviour, transport accidents and criminality, scientists have suggested.
The BBC reports that around 5% of children and 2.5% of adults worldwide are thought to be affected by the disorder – and growing numbers are being diagnosed.
The findings, published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ), confirm the wider potential benefits of drug treatment and could help patients decide whether to start medication, the researchers say.
The most commonly prescribed drugs help manage everyday symptoms but there has been limited evidence of longer-term benefits for people’s behaviour, while well-publicised side effects, such as headaches, loss of appetite and trouble sleeping, have sparked debate on their safety.
The BMJ study was based on 148 500 people with ADHD – in Sweden – aged six to 64.
Of them, 57% started drug treatment and, of these, methylphenidate (Ritalin), was prescribed, to 88%.
The researchers, from Southampton University in the UK and the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, found taking ADHD medication was linked to reductions of first-time instances of:
• suicidal behaviour – 17%
• substance misuse – 15%
• transport accidents – 12%
• criminal behaviour – 13%
When recurrent events were analysed, the researchers found ADHD medication was linked to reductions of:
• 15% for suicide attempts
• 25% for substance misuses
• 4% for accidental injuries
• 16% for transport accidents
• 25% for criminal behaviour
“Often, there is no information on what the risks are if you don’t treat ADHD,” said Professor Samuele Cortese, study author and Professor of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at the University of Southampton.
“Now we have evidence the drugs can reduce these risks.”
This could be explained by medication reducing impulsive behaviour and lack of concentration, which might reduce the risk of accidents while driving and reduce aggressive behaviour which could lead to criminality.
The researchers said the study was designed to be as robust as possible but cannot rule out the possibility of the results being affected by factors like people’s genes, lifestyles and the severity of their ADHD.
Accessing the right medication for ADHD in many countries is not easy, with some drugs in short supply. In Britain, waiting times to see specialists after diagnosis to access drugs can be several years.
Professor Stuart Kinner, head of the Justice Health Group at Curtin University in Western Australia, said the research demonstrated “the diffuse benefits of ADHD diagnosis and treatment”.
“Failure to diagnose and treat ADHD can lead to self-medication with alcohol or other drugs, poor mental health, injury, and incarceration,” he said.
“Too many people with undiagnosed with the condition end up in the criminal justice system, where their condition may remain undiagnosed and untreated.”
Ian Maidment, Professor in Clinical Pharmacy at Aston University, Birmingham, UK, said the study “adds to our understanding of the potential benefits of these drugs”.
However, he said the research did not assess whether patients actually took their medication or the impact of different doses.
BBC article – ADHD drugs have wider life benefits, study suggests (Open access)
See more from MedicalBrief archives:
ADHD drug benefits outweigh health risks – global study
ADHD linked to increased dementia risk across family generations
No conclusive CVD risk link to ADHD medicines – Swedish meta-analysis