Use of methylphenidate in children and adolescents with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is associated with increased risk for arrhythmia — and potentially elevated risk for myocardial infarction — according to a self-controlled case series study in The BMJ.
Using a South Korean health insurance claims database, researchers studied more than 1200 pediatric patients aged ≤17 years who started taking methylphenidate for ADHD and had an adverse cardiovascular event over a 4-year period. By comparing the times that the patient was exposed and unexposed to methylphenidate, each child served as his or her own control.
Overall, methylphenidate use was tied to increased risk for arrhythmia (adjusted incidence rate ratio, 1.6), with the…