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Media Inquiries: 434-924-5679 DRUG IMPROVES DRIVING PERFORMANCE ALL DAY IN TEENS WITH ADHD |
| Studies show that teenagers with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are at a high risk for driving accidents. Of the psychostimulant medications available to help regulate behavior and attention for this group, two were compared for their effectiveness in helping teens’ driving performances in a study conducted at the University of Virginia Health System. Daniel J. Cox, principle investigator of the study and professor of psychiatric medicine at U.Va., found that Concerta®, an osmotic, controlled-release oral system of methylphenidate (MPH), improved simulator-driving performance throughout the day better than Ritalin®, an immediate-release MPH. The results will be published in the March edition of the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.
Psychostimulants affect how the brain controls impulses and regulates behavior and attention by influencing the availability of chemicals called neurotransmitters that are present in the brain. Six male, ADHD-diagnosed drivers, between the ages of 16 and 19, were given equivalent doses of Concerta® once a day and Ritalin® three times per day. When the drivers took Ritalin®, researchers found that their driving performance dramatically deteriorated in the evening. When the drivers took Concerta®, researchers found that their driving performances remained stable throughout the evening and into the night. “ADHD is typically seen as a disorder that affects school performance and its affects on the tendency for accidents and injuries are sometimes ignored,” Cox said. “This study shows that particular MPH preparations may have advantages over others in reducing the risk for accidents and injuries—particularly while driving.” The drivers’ performances were measured using the Atari Research Driving Simulator, a realistic, interactive, fixed-platform simulator that generates accurate, sensitive and valid driving performance data, according to Cox. The realistic driving environment it creates with its three “wrap around” computer screens, allows observers to examine three driving variables: steering control, braking control and speed control. The researchers, blinded to the subjects’ medication, rated each driver’s performance on a 1 to 5, “Poor” to “Well” scale. When the drivers were taking Ritalin ®, they often used their brakes at inappropriate times, ran through more stop signals, had erratic speed control and had more collisions than when they were taking Concerta®. Also, when the drivers were taking Ritalin®, they tended to drive off road and veer across the midline more often than when they took Concerta®. These results were confirmed by the researchers’ blind ratings and by the teens’ driving diaries that were collected the week before laboratory testing on the simulator. The teens’ driving performances were studied over a 6-month period. The research team included: Dr. Lawrence Merkel, assistant professor in the Department of Psychiatric Medicine at U.Va.; Jennifer Kim Penberthy, PhD, assistant professor in the Department of Psychiatric Medicine at U.Va.; Boris Kovatchev, PhD, associate professor in the Department of Psychiatric Medicine at U.Va.; Cheryl S. Hankin, PhD, health economics and outcomes researcher at McNeil Consumer and Specialty Pharmaceuticals, in Fort Washington, Penn. McNeil Consumer & Specialty Pharmaceuticals funded the study was. February 20, 2004 |