Epilepsy and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: Is methylphenidate safe and effective?☆,☆☆,★
Section snippets
METHODS
The study group consisted of 30 children with epilepsy, aged 6.4 to 16.4 (9.8 ± 2.8) years, with a diagnosis of ADHD made by a pediatric neurologist using the criteria of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (third edition, revised), 2 cognitive testing, and a behavior questionnaire (Child Behavior Checklist [CBCL]). 13 Information was available from both parents and teachers. The IQ of the children ranged from 50 to 121 (92.8 ± 20.4). None of the patients had visual or
Seizure frequency
During the no-methylphenidate period, 25 children were seizure free and 5 had a maximum of two seizures a week. None of the seizure-free children had attacks while taking methylphenidate. Of the 5 children who had had seizures in the no-methylphenidate period, 3 had an increase in seizure frequency: 2 children had three seizures a week and the other had seven a week; one child showed no change in seizure frequency during the methylphenidate period, and one child was seizure free. Results of
DISCUSSION
Methylphenidate proved beneficial to the majority (70%) of the children with ADHD who had a concurrent diagnosis of epilepsy, consistent with the percentages (70% to 80%) noted in the literature. Parents of 21 children noted improvement of the ADHD symptoms and considered it sufficient to justify continued psychostimulant treatment, even when mild or transient side effects appeared. Enhanced performance was also seen on the CPT.
The use of psychostimulants in children with the dual diagnosis of
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Cited by (0)
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Supported by the Office of the Chief Scientist, Israel Ministry of Health.
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Reprint requests: Ruth Shalev, MD, Pediatric Neurobehavioral Unit, Shaare Zedek Medical Center, POB 3235, Jerusalem, Israel.
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0022-3476/97/$5.00 + 0 9/21/76846