Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2013 Sep;23(7):432-9.
doi: 10.1089/cap.2012.0111. Epub 2013 Sep 9.

Five-fold increase in national prevalence rates of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder medications for children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, and other psychiatric disorders: a Danish register-based study

Søren Dalsgaard  1 , Helena Skyt Nielsen, Marianne Simonsen
Affiliations

Five-fold increase in national prevalence rates of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder medications for children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, and other psychiatric disorders: a Danish register-based study

Søren Dalsgaard et al. J Child Adolesc Psychopharmacol. 2013 Sep.

Abstract

Objective: The purpose of this study was to estimate the prevalence and time trends in prescriptions of methylphenidate, dexamphetamine, and atomoxetine in children and adolescents, within three diagnostic groups: 1) autism spectrum disorder (ASD), 2) attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and 3) other psychiatric disorders.

Methods: Data from six different national registers were used and merged to identify a cohort of all children and adolescents born in Denmark between 1990 and 2001 (n=852,711). Sociodemographic covariates on cohort members and their parents and lifetime prescriptions of methylphenidate, dexamphetamine, and atomoxetine were extracted from the registers. Prescriptions were also stratified by duration (<6 months. vs.≥ 6 months).

Results: Sixteen percent of 9698 children and adolescents with ASD (n=1577), 61% of 11,553 children and adolescents with ADHD (n=7021) and 3% of 48,468 children and adolescents with other psychiatric disorders (n=1537) were treated with one or more ADHD medications. There was a significant increase in prescription rates of these medications for all three groups. From 2003 to 2010, youth 6-13 years of age with ASD, ADHD, and other psychiatric disorders had 4.7-fold (4.4-4.9), 6.3-fold (6.0-6.4), and 5.5-fold (5.0-5.9) increases, respectively, in prescription rates of ADHD medications.

Conclusion: This is the largest study to date assessing stimulant treatment in children and adolescents with ASD, and is the first prospective study quantifying the change over time in the prevalence of treatment with ADHD medications in a population-based national cohort of children and adolescents with ASD. The prevalence of stimulant treatment in youth with ASD of 16% is consistent with earlier studies. The past decade has witnessed a clear and progressive increase in the prescription rates of medications typically used to treat ADHD in children and adolescents in Denmark. This increase is not limited to only those with ADHD, but includes others with neuropsychiatric disorders, including ASD. The risks and benefits of this practice await further study.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

FIG. 1.
FIG. 1.
Prevalence of treatment with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) medication (methylphenidate, dexamphetamine and/or atomoxetine) over time, in youth with autism spectrum disorder, with 95% confidence intervals. ADHD, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder; ASD; autism spectrum disorder. A color version of this figure is available in the online article at www.liebertpub.com/jcap
FIG. 2.
FIG. 2.
Prevalence of treatment with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) medication (methylphenidate, dexamphetamine and/or atomoxetine over time), in youth with ADHD, with 95% confidence intervals. ADHD, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. A color version of this figure is available in the online article at www.liebertpub.com/jcap
FIG. 3.
FIG. 3.
Prevalence of treatment with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) medication (methylphenidate, dexamphetamine and/or atomoxetine) over time, in youth with other psychiatric disorders, with 95% confidence intervals. ADHD, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. A color version of this figure is available in the online article at www.liebertpub.com/jcap
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Aman MG. Farmer CA. Hollway J. Arnold LE. Treatment of inattention, overactivity, and impulsiveness in autism spectrum disorders. Child Adolesc Psychiatr Clin N Am. 2008;17:713–738. vii. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Aman MG. Lam KS. Van Bourgondien ME. Medication patterns in patients with autism: temporal, regional, and demographic influences. J Child Adolesc Psychopharmacol. 2005;15:116–126. - PubMed
    1. Aman MG. Langworthy KS. Pharmacotherapy for hyperactivity in children with autism and other pervasive developmental disorders. J Autism Dev Disord. 2000;30:451–459. - PubMed
    1. American Psychiatric Association: Diagnostic, Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. 4th. Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Association; 1994.
    1. American Psychiatric Association. DSM-5 Development: ADHD and Disruptive Behavior Disorders. http://www.dsm5.org/ProposedRevision/Pages/proposedrevision.aspx?rid=383.... [Nov 17;2012 ]. http://www.dsm5.org/ProposedRevision/Pages/proposedrevision.aspx?rid=383...

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources