Drugs for treating ADHD in children

At present, there are two main types of drugs used to treat ADHD in China: central nervous system stimulants (methylphenidate hydrochloride, trade name: Focused) and non-central nervous system stimulants (tomoxetine hydrochloride, trade name: Selected). Both drugs directly target the cause of the disease, allowing the chemicals in the brain responsible for controlling behavior to return to normal levels, thereby helping children concentrate and reduce irritability and temper tantrums.

The former has a quick onset of action, lasting 10-12 hours; the latter lasts 24 hours, taking effect in about 2-4 weeks. Both drugs have good clinical efficacy and high safety. They can improve the social function and emotions of children with ADHD, will not affect the growth and intellectual development of children, and are suitable for long-term use. Parents often ask, ADHD is a neurological disorder, why are some drugs neurostimulants?

Although children with ADHD are hyperactive, the cause of the disease is the reduction of chemicals in certain areas of the brain, the decrease in the excitability of the "headquarters", and the decline in management and control ability, including the decrease in control over movement, attention, logical reasoning, and completing plans, which leads to abnormal performance in these areas. The purpose of taking stimulant drugs is to increase the excitability of the brain's "headquarters" and ensure that the "headquarters" effectively controls behavior, fundamentally reducing impulsive behavior and achieving the purpose of concentrating attention.

At present, the medical community unanimously agrees that ADHD should be treated with a comprehensive approach with medication as the main treatment. Medication can increase attention span, improve writing and movement coordination, improve learning efficiency, improve emotional control, increase peer acceptance, improve interaction, increase self-esteem and self-confidence, reduce impulsivity and overexcitement, reduce hostility and defiance, and reduce punishment.

Drug therapy has a positive effect in improving the attention deficit of children with ADHD, reducing activity levels and impulsivity, improving academic performance, and improving interpersonal relationships. The benefit of drug therapy is that it can control symptoms and enable psychological counseling and educational training to be implemented. The vast majority of children with ADHD need drug therapy.

For a small number of children with mild symptoms and little functional impairment, doctors will be very cautious about whether they need to take medication. They will discuss and communicate with the parents based on the child's assessment and develop the best individualized treatment plan suitable for the child's condition.