Stimulant Medication and Symptom Interrelations in Children, Adolescents and Adults with Attention-deficit/hyperactivity Disorder

Overview

Journal Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry

Specialties Pediatrics
Psychiatry

Date 2024 Nov 11

PMID 39527154

Authors

Zarah van der Pal

Hilde M Geurts

Jonas M B Haslbeck

Alex van Keeken

Anne Marijn Bruijn

Linda Douw

Daan van Rooij

Barbara Franke

Jan Buitelaar

Nanda Lambregts-Rommelse

Catharina Hartman

Jaap Oosterlaan

Marjolein Luman

Liesbeth Reneman

Pieter J Hoekstra

Tessa F Blanken

Anouk Schrantee

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Stimulant medication is effective in alleviating overall symptom severity of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), yet interindividual variability in treatment response and tolerability still exists. While network analysis has identified differences in ADHD symptom relations, the impact of stimulant medication remains unexplored. Increased understanding of this association could provide valuable insights for optimizing treatment approaches for individuals with ADHD. In this study, we compared and characterized ADHD symptom networks (including 18 ADHD symptoms) between stimulant-treated (n = 348) and untreated (n = 70) individuals with ADHD and non-ADHD controls (NACs; n = 444). Moreover, we compared symptom networks between subgroups defined by their stimulant treatment trajectory (early-and-intense use, late-and-moderate use). Stimulant-treated individuals with ADHD showed stronger associations between symptoms, compared with untreated individuals with ADHD and NACs. We found no differences in symptom networks between the stimulant treatment trajectory subgroups. Prospective longitudinal studies are needed to disentangle whether the identified differences stem from treatment or pre-existing factors.

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