ADD - Treatment Through Medication
In this third of a series of articles on ADD we're going to
focus on treatments for ADD besides simple nutrition.
The most common form of treatment for ADD is through medication.
The underlying theory on ADD is that it is caused by a chemical
imbalance in the brain. Through certain medications we can
correct that imbalance and help a person with ADD to live a
normal and productive life.
PET scans of patients with ADD who are taking medication for
their condition show that there is significant improvement in
many cases.
Medication that is given to treat ADD is to stimulate the
production of two neurotransmitters known as dopamine and
norephinephrine. These neurotransmitters are needed to carry a
nerve impulse along a neuropathway. When one of these
transmitters is under supplied the message is stopped short of
it's intended destination. When this happens, whatever function
that circuit is assigned to doesn't work properly.
Your brain circuits are like a computer circuit. They are either
on or off. When a circuit is on it makes something happen, like
helping a child concentrate on a math problem or read a passage
from a novel. When other circuits are on they prevent something
from happening. For instance, some circuits prevent a child from
becoming over emotional about an event or situation. If this
circuit is supposed to be on but isn't because the transmitter
didn't work then the child ends up getting upset where a child
without ADD would have remained calm.
Medicines that treat ADD are not sedatives or tranquilizers.
They don't slow down the nervous system. What they do is
stimulate various areas of the brain to be more active, actually
the reverse of a sedative. By being more active, concentration
and attention are improved. This medication helps circuits stay
on when they're supposed to be on.
The most common medication for ADD is Ritalin, which is a
psychostimulant. The drug appears to work very well in treating
ADD. However, it has gotten a lot of bad press even though it is
relatively safe and very effective. Should Ritalin not work
other drugs may be used like antidepressants and beta blockers.
These have both been shown to be very effective for certain
patients.
Other drugs that have been used to treat ADD are Dexedrine,
Desoxyn, Adderall, and Cylert, which are all stimulant drugs
like Ritalin. The most common antidepressants are Desiprimine,
Anafranil, Elavil, Tofranil, Wellbutrin, Prozac, Zoloft, and
Paxil. Then there are neuroleptics which were developed to treat
serious mental disorders like psychosis and schizophrenia. In
patients with severe ADD symptoms these have been very effective
treatments. The most common of these drugs is Haldol and
Mellaril. However the AMA cautions that these drugs should only
be used in the most severe cases of ADD. Then you have mood
stabilizers which are lithium based drugs that are very
effective in certain cases in calming a child down.
The number of drugs to treat ADD is numerous and growing
everyday. With proper diagnosis and testing it is relatively
easy to find the right drug for treating the disorder in each
case.
In the next article we'll discuss other treatments for ADD.