Shedding the concerns over the stunted child’s growth due to the usage of stimulants for treating Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), a new study has found that this type of medication has no adverse impact on the children’s final height in adulthood.
ADHD is the most common childhood neuro-developmental disorders that could often last into adulthood. It is commonly treated through a stimulant medication.
Between 70 and 80 percent of children with ADHD respond positively to stimulants, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report said.
Five percent of children suffer from ADHD, the American Psychiatric Association said. However, these figures are said to be higher in the US. According to recent surveys of parents, it was found that around 11 percent of children between age group 4 and 17 years have been diagnosed with ADHD as of 2011. This makes the total affected from the disease to 6.4 million.
Children who suffer from this neurological disorder face difficulty in paying attention and controlling their impulsive behavior. They are found to be overly active.
According to the CDC, the risk factors or underlying causes that lead to the disorder are not known but genetic problems may play a significant role.
For studying the relation between stimulant medications and final adult height, the researchers involved 340 children with ADHD. All the participants were born between 1976 and 1982. The researchers compared the final height of the participating children when they turned adults with a control group of 680 children without the neurological disorder.
Following analysis of participants’ height and their stimulant treatment information during their adulthood, the researchers found that both ADHD and stimulant treatment were not linked with final height in adulthood.
“Our findings suggest that ADHD treatment with stimulant medication is not associated with differences in adult height or significant changes in growth,” the research group said.
The findings of the study were published in the American Academy of Pediatrics’ (AAP) journal Pediatrics.