BACKGROUND: Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is linked to increased risk for substance use disorders and nicotine dependence. AIMS: To examine the effects of stimulant treatment on subsequent risk for substance use disorder and nicotine dependence in a prospective longitudinal ADHD case-control study. METHOD: At baseline we assessed ADHD, conduct disorder and oppositional defiant disorder. Substance use disorders, nicotine dependence and stimulant treatment were assessed retrospectively after a mean follow-up of 4.4 years, at a mean age of 16.4 years. RESULTS: Stimulant treatment of ADHD was linked to a reduced risk for substance use disorders compared with no stimulant treatment, even after controlling for conduct disorder and oppositional defiant disorder (hazard ratio (HR) = 1.91, 95% CI 1.10-3.36), but not to nicotine dependence (HR = 1.12, 95% CI 0.45-2.96). Within the stimulant-treated group, a protective effect of age at first stimulant use on substance use disorder development was found, which diminished with age, and seemed to reverse around the age of 18. CONCLUSIONS: Stimulant treatment appears to lower the risk of developing substance use disorders and does not have an impact on the development of nicotine dependence in adolescents with ADHD.
BACKGROUND:Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is linked to increased risk for substance use disorders and nicotine dependence. AIMS: To examine the effects of stimulant treatment on subsequent risk for substance use disorder and nicotine dependence in a prospective longitudinal ADHD case-control study. METHOD: At baseline we assessed ADHD, conduct disorder and oppositional defiant disorder. Substance use disorders, nicotine dependence and stimulant treatment were assessed retrospectively after a mean follow-up of 4.4 years, at a mean age of 16.4 years. RESULTS: Stimulant treatment of ADHD was linked to a reduced risk for substance use disorders compared with no stimulant treatment, even after controlling for conduct disorder and oppositional defiant disorder (hazard ratio (HR) = 1.91, 95% CI 1.10-3.36), but not to nicotine dependence (HR = 1.12, 95% CI 0.45-2.96). Within the stimulant-treated group, a protective effect of age at first stimulant use on substance use disorder development was found, which diminished with age, and seemed to reverse around the age of 18. CONCLUSIONS: Stimulant treatment appears to lower the risk of developing substance use disorders and does not have an impact on the development of nicotine dependence in adolescents with ADHD.
Authors: James M Swanson; L Eugene Arnold; Brooke S G Molina; Margaret H Sibley; Lily T Hechtman; Stephen P Hinshaw; Howard B Abikoff; Annamarie Stehli; Elizabeth B Owens; John T Mitchell; Quyen Nichols; Andrea Howard; Laurence L Greenhill; Betsy Hoza; Jeffrey H Newcorn; Peter S Jensen; Benedetto Vitiello; Timothy Wigal; Jeffery N Epstein; Leanne Tamm; Kimberly D Lakes; James Waxmonsky; Marc Lerner; Joy Etcovitch; Desiree W Murray; Maximilian Muenke; Maria T Acosta; Mauricio Arcos-Burgos; William E Pelham; Helena C Kraemer Journal: J Child Psychol Psychiatry Date: 2017-03-10 Impact factor: 8.982
Authors: Patrick D Quinn; Zheng Chang; Kwan Hur; Robert D Gibbons; Benjamin B Lahey; Martin E Rickert; Arvid Sjölander; Paul Lichtenstein; Henrik Larsson; Brian M D'Onofrio Journal: Am J Psychiatry Date: 2017-06-29 Impact factor: 18.112
Authors: Daniel von Rhein; Maarten Mennes; Hanneke van Ewijk; Annabeth P Groenman; Marcel P Zwiers; Jaap Oosterlaan; Dirk Heslenfeld; Barbara Franke; Pieter J Hoekstra; Stephen V Faraone; Catharina Hartman; Jan Buitelaar Journal: Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry Date: 2014-07-11 Impact factor: 4.785