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
Review
. 2024 Aug 31;16(8):e68324.
doi: 10.7759/cureus.68324. eCollection 2024 Aug.

Lisdexamfetamine's Efficacy in Treating Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD): A Meta-Analysis and Review

Heath Rutledge-Jukes  1   2 , Pallavi Jonnalagadda  3 , Andrew Paul McIntosh  4 , Saso Krstovski  5 , Nicholas Andriani  6   7 , Ireland R Smith  8 , Lauren Prendergast  9 , James M Lynch  8
Affiliations
Review

Lisdexamfetamine's Efficacy in Treating Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD): A Meta-Analysis and Review

Heath Rutledge-Jukes et al. Cureus. .

Abstract

Lisdexamfetamine dimesylate, a prodrug stimulant, appears to effectively treat Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in children and adults. However, an analysis of the treatment effects of the two subscales (inattentiveness and hyperactivity) within the ADHD Rating Scale-IV (ADHD-RS-IV) has not yet been done to determine if clinical significance may be attributed to either one. Nor has there been a meta-analysis of the individual doses of lisdexamfetamine dimesylate. The current meta-analysis utilizes MEDLINE, Embase, Cochrane, PubMed, and clinicaltrials.gov to identify peer-reviewed studies. Selected studies were eligible if they met the following criteria: English language, randomized-controlled trials, and utilized the ADHD-RS-IV scale to assess the efficacy of lisdexamfetamine on treating ADHD in either children or adults. The primary studies utilized were published between January 2007 and April 2024. Many of these studies calculate effect sizes based on several dosages pooled together rather than by individual dosages. We conducted a random-effects meta-analysis to estimate the effect sizes for these pooled dosages on the full ADHD-RS-IV scale and its subscales, as well as to calculate effect sizes on the same scales based on the individual dosages. Our main outcome measures are the ADHD-RS-IV scale and its subscales in individual doses and pooled results in both children and adults. Adverse events during treatment were also analyzed based on stratified dosages. Eleven publications met our inclusion criteria. The analyses indicate that compared to placebo, lisdexamfetamine effectively alleviates the symptoms outlined by the ADHD-RS-IV. Moreover, there are no differences in the individual subscales or in the safety profile. Lisdexamfetamine demonstrates efficacy in treating the symptoms of ADHD, but we report that differing dosages did not yield significant differences in ADHD symptom management.

Keywords: adhd; adhd-rs-iv; adults; children; hyperactivity; inattentiveness; lisdexamfetamine dimesylate; meta-analysis; subscales.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Conflicts of interest: In compliance with the ICMJE uniform disclosure form, all authors declare the following: Payment/services info: All authors have declared that no financial support was received from any organization for the submitted work. Financial relationships: All authors have declared that they have no financial relationships at present or within the previous three years with any organizations that might have an interest in the submitted work. Other relationships: All authors have declared that there are no other relationships or activities that could appear to have influenced the submitted work.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. PRISMA flow diagram
PRISMA: Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses
Figure 2
Figure 2. Overall change in ADHD-RS-IV
All dosages stratified by age group. ADHD-RS=Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Rating Scale, Con=Control group sample size, Exp=Experimental group sample size.
Figure 3
Figure 3. Overall change in ADHD (children)
Stratified by dosage. ADHD=Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder, Con=Control group sample size, Exp=Experimental group sample size.
Figure 4
Figure 4. Change in hyperactivity dimension of ADHD
All dosages stratified by age group [18,20,23] ADHD=Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder, Con=Control group sample size; Exp=Experimental group sample size.
Figure 5
Figure 5. Change in inattention dimension of ADHD
All dosages stratified by age group. ADHD=Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder, Con =Control Group Sample Size, Exp = Experimental Group Sample Size. Note: Weights are from random effects.
Figure 6
Figure 6. Treatment-emergent adverse events (TEAE)
Stratified by age group.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Presenting ADHD symptoms, subtypes, and comorbid disorders in clinically referred adults with ADHD. Wilens TE, Biederman J, Faraone SV, Martelon M, Westerberg D, Spencer TJ. J Clin Psychiatry. 2009;70:1557–1562. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Prevalence of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Thomas R, Sanders S, Doust J, Beller E, Glasziou P. Pediatrics. 2015;135:0–1001. - PubMed
    1. Focus on lisdexamfetamine: a review of its use in child and adolescent psychiatry. Elbe D, MacBride A, Reddy D. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2962544. J Can Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2010;19:303–314. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Lisdexamfetamine: a review in ADHD in adults. Frampton JE. CNS Drugs. 2016;30:343–354. - PubMed
    1. Review of lisdexamfetamine dimesylate in adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Najib J, Wimer D, Zeng J, Lam KW, Romanyak N, Paige Morgan E, Thadavila A. J Cent Nerv Syst Dis. 2017;9:1179573517728090. - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources