Do Stimulant Medications Cause Chromosomal Damage?

Neither methylphenidate nor mixed amphetamine salts induced chromosomal changes in children with ADHD.

Prior research has suggested that methylphenidate (MPH) treatment in children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) induces chromosomal damage. To further explore this issue, researchers randomized 63 children (age range, 6–12 years) with ADHD who had not previously been treated with stimulant medication and had not received x-rays in the prior 3 months to receive treatment with MPH or mixed amphetamine salts.

Blood samples were taken at baseline and after 3 months of treatment to evaluate three markers of chromosomal damage in lymphocytes: structural aberrations, micronuclei, and sister chromatid exchanges. Twenty-five percent of patients did not complete treatment. No significant signs of cytogenetic change were found in the…

Reviewing Author

Martin T. Stein, MD

Disclosures

Consultant / Advisory boardPearson Neuroscience Advisory Board

Speaker’s bureauAmerican Academy of Pediatrics

RoyaltiesElsevier, Inc.

Editorial boardsJournal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics

Martin T. Stein, MD

Disclosures

Consultant / Advisory boardPearson Neuroscience Advisory Board

Speaker’s bureauAmerican Academy of Pediatrics

RoyaltiesElsevier, Inc.

Editorial boardsJournal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics