Author: Joseph Biederman and the Atomoxetine ADHD Study Group
Source: Pediatrics, Volume 110, Number 6, electronic article number 75, December, 2002
This article describes the effects of a new drug called Atomoxetine on the degree of ADHD symptoms in school-aged girls. As part of two large, well-designed (prospective, randomized, double-blind, placebo controlled) studies, 51 girls (ages 7-13 years) who had normal intelligence and were already diagnosed with ADHD were enrolled.
Both parents and investigators evaluated the girls? degree of ADHD using several different scales (including the ADHD Rating Scale and the Connors? Parent Rating Scale-Revised).
Once the first evaluations were complete, each girl was started on a daily regimen of either atomoxetine, placebo (pretend medicine), or methylphenidate (Ritalin?) but neither she, her parents, nor any of the examiners knew which one she was receiving until the end of the study.
Each week, parents were interviewed and ADHD symptom severity testing was done using the rating scales mentioned above.
Girls treated with Atomoxetine were found to have a much greater decrease in the severity of ADHD related symptoms compared to those who received a placebo. This improvement was seen in the first week after starting the medicine and continued throughout the study.
While the girls who received the Atomoxetine were more likely to report headache, stomachache and vomiting than those who took a placebo, this was not felt to happen enough to be significant.
The authors felt that there were too few subjects available to compare the atomoxetine to methylphenidate.
The authors conclude that atomoxetine is effective and well tolerated for the treatment of ADHD in school-aged girls.
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