Common Side Effects and Medication Adjustment
 

  1. Decreased Appetite, Nausea or Growth Impairment
    • Take medication with meals
    • Do not force meals -- encourage foods with high caloric density or nutritional supplements
    • Encourage evening/bedtime snack
    • Change from long acting to short acting preparation
    • If severe, consider drug holiday or different agent
    • See parent handout: Feeding Your Child with AD/HD
  2. Sleep Disturbances
    • Administer doses earlier in the day
    • Change to a short acting preparation
    • Discontinue afternoon/evening dose
  3. Rebound Phenomena
    • Change to long acting preparation
    • Overlap stimulant dosing
  4. Irritability
    • Assess timing of symptoms
      • -peak-reduce dose or try long acting formulation
      • -withdrawal-change to long acting formulation
    • Evaluate for comorbid diagnosis
  5. Dysphoria, moodiness, agitation, dazed or withdrawn behavior
    • Decrease dose or change to long acting formulation
    • Consider comorbid diagnosis
  6. Dizziness
    • Monitor blood pressure
    • Encourage fluid intake
    • Change to long acting formulation
  7. Development or increase in tic disorder
    • Stop stimulant
    • Consider trial of Clonidine
    • Consider referral

    adapted from (45)

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