A Comparison of Ritalin and Adderall: Efficacy and Time-Course in Children with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder
A Comparison of Ritalin and Adderall: Efficacy and Time-course in Children With Attention-deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder William E. Pelham, PhD*; Helen R. Aronoff, MD‡; Jill K. Midlam, MA*; Cheri J. Shapiro, PhD*; Elizabeth M. Gnagy, BS*; Andrea M. Chronis, BS*; Adia N. Onyango, BS*; Gregory Forehand, BS*; Anh Nguyen, BS*; and James Waxmonsky, MD‡ ABSTRACT. Objective. Very little research has fo- ratings were also made for evening behavior to assess cused on the efficacy of Adderall (Shire-Richwood Inc, possible rebound, and side effects ratings were obtained Florence, KY) in the treatment of children with attention- from parents, counselors, and teachers. Parents, counsel- deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and no studies ors, and teachers also rated their perceptions of medica- have compared it with standardized doses of Ritalin tion status and whether they recommended the contin- (Novartis Pharmaceuticals, East Hanover, NJ). It is ued use of the medication given that day. Finally, a thought that Adderall has a longer half-life than Ritalin clinical team made recommendations for treatment tak- and might minimize the loss of efficacy that occurs 4 or 5 ing into account each child’s individual response. hours after Ritalin ingestion. We compared two doses of Results. Both drugs were routinely superior to pla- Ritalin and Adderall in the treatment of ADHD in chil- cebo and produced dramatic improvements in rates of dren in an acute study and assessed the medications’ negative behavior, academic productivity, and staff/par- time courses. ent ratings of behavior. The doses of Adderall that were Design. Within-subject, double-blind, placebo-con- assessed produced greater improvement than did the as- trolled, crossover design lasting 6 weeks.
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