ADD/ADHD News

Boston Children’s Hospital, once again, has claimed the top spot in U.S. News & World Report’s annual rankings for Best Children’s Hospital.

The use of stimulant medications has been an integral aspect for the pharmacotherapy of ADHD for more than 50 years. Numerous published studies have documented their efficacy to reduce symptoms of ADHD in children older than age 4 years. As with any medication, however, adverse effects occur, and these adverse effects must be balanced against the medication’s benefit for each individual patient. The potential for a negative adverse effect on growth from stimulant medications has been discussed in the literature for years.

In a letter, AAP President Sara H. Goza, MD, FAAP, asked HHS for “immediate, direct financial relief payments” for pediatricians, pediatric medical subspecialists and pediatric surgical specialists “to keep practices open, pay staff, and procure needed supplies.”

The CDC recently announced that 1 in 54 children aged 8 years in 2016 had autism in the United States. The previous estimate for that age was 1 in 59 children in 2014 and 1 in 68 children in 2010.

Preeclampsia in term pregnancies appeared to have lasting effects on the neurodevelopment of the child, according to results of a prospective, population-based cohort study published in JAMA Psychiatry.

Children and adolescents with ADHD who discontinued medication experienced a small but statistically significant decrease in quality of life, according to results of a systematic review and meta-analysis published in Journal of Clinical Psychiatry.

Pregnant women who had maternal vitamin 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels less than 100 nmol/L were more likely to have children with ADHD, according to a population-based case-control study published in the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry.

About 64% of young mothers reported at least one mental health problem and 37% had reported experiencing more than one, according to the results from a study conducted in Canada.

Children with ADHD who live in poor areas may be significantly more likely to receive medication for their disorder than children with ADHD who live in affluent areas, according to a study conducted in the U.K. and published in BJPsych Open.

Researchers reported that horseback riding, combined with mental exercises, positively impacted the motor skills of children and adolescents diagnosed with autism, ADHD and other neurodevelopmental disorders.