ADHD symptoms can be managed with drugs, as well as by talking therapies
Alex in Stasi / Shutterstock
People with ADHD who take drugs to manage their symptoms have a lower risk of suicidal behavior, criminal convictions, drug addiction, accidentally injury or a road accident, according to a study of 150,000 people in Sweden. Previous research has suggested that this is the case, but researchers from the latest study say that this is the most reliable proof so far.
“This is the best approach, the closest to a randomized trial,” said Zheng Chang at the Karolinska Institute in Sweden.
When drugs are taken into account for the management of ADHD, the broader consequences of not taking them can be overlooked, explains Samuele Cortese, member of the team, at the University of Southampton in the United Kingdom. For example, parents tend to focus on the immediate problems that their children have in school, he says, but they should also be informed of the longer term prospects.
“If you don’t treat ADHD, there are risks,” he says. “We now have evidence that the treatment reduces these risks.”
People with ADHD often find it difficult to pay attention and can make impulsive decisions. Randomized controlled trials show that drugs are effective in managing these immediate symptoms.
These types of tests involve random assignment to obtain treatment or not, and they are considered to be the gold stallion in medicine. But no randomized trial examined the wider effects of taking ADHD medication. Instead, the researchers had to rely on observation studies, which are not configured to show whether the taking of drugs actually causes the changes observed in symptoms or behavior.
Now Chang, Cortese and their colleagues have done what is called target test emulation, which involves analyzing observation data as if it came from a randomized trial. They used data from the medical and legal files of Sweden to see how people behaved in the two years following a diagnosis of ADHD.
Compared to those who did not receive drugs during this period, those who started taking ADHD drugs within 3 months were 25% less likely to receive criminal convictions or have a problem with drugs or alcohol. They were also 16% less likely to be involved in a road accident, 15% less likely to try to commit suicide and 4% less likely to have accidental injury.
“It is always useful to know if drugs can have an impact on everyday life beyond the reduction of symptoms,” said Adam Guastella from Sydney University in Australia in science Media Center in the United Kingdom. “This information is also important for governments to help political decision -makers understand the potential advantages of treatment for a broader society, such as mental health or criminal results.”
Need an ear to listen? UK Samaritans: 116123 (samaritans.org); US 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: 988 (988lifeline.org). Visit bit.ly/suicidehelplins for other countries.
Subjects:
