A new study finds the Adderall shortage that began during COVID didn’t prevent most kids from getting an ADHD stimulant, but it did force them to change medications.
Is the shortage of ADHD drugs, especially Adderall, forcing children to constantly switch medications?
In a new study, researchers compared stimulant rates for kids and teens before, during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.
Overall, they found stimulant dispensing for children 5-17 dropped nearly 19% from January 2017 to March 2020.
Adderall rates in particular declined once again in October 2022 when the FDA announced a shortage of the drug. But the researchers say the impact was offset by an increase in the use of alternative stimulants and was “not significant.”
The authors of an accompanying editorial say, “These findings alone do not adequately capture the burden on families and clinicians scrambling to find necessary medical treatment for children with ADHD every month.”
They say forcing children to switch to other stimulant medications has led to cascading shortages that are constantly changing.
Source: Pediatrics
Author Affiliations: University of Michigan Medical School, Boston University
University of Chicago
Editorial Authors:
Boston Children’s Hospital
Harvard Medical School
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