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Giving your child medication for ADHD can be a tricky business. Most medications are amphetamines, and in some children can make the child become more aggressive. You’re basically putting your child on legal speed, and for this reason, many parents have been hesitant to use medication with their children.
At the current time, there is only one non-stimulant on the market and that is Straterra. Straterra had some great benefits. It is not a stimulant, so it doesn’t require the monthly written prescription from the doctor that the amphetamines do. You can also get samples from your doctor and avoid the prescription costs or co-pays while you determine if this is the right medication for your child. However, Straterra does have a couple of drawbacks, one of which we experienced at our house. There is a “black box warming” on the medication that it can cause homicidal and suicidal thoughts in kids. It is very rare, ½ of 1%, but it is something to be aware of. The other is liver damage, so kids should be checked while taking this medication.
There are two new medications that are slated to hit the market.
The first one is Vyvnaese. You can read the press release here. It is a stimulant medication as well, but new safeguards require that the drug hit the stomach before it becomes active, thereby preventing the alternative uses of snorting or injecting the medication for drug abuse reasons.
If all goes well, it should hit the market before the end of the year. You can read full prescribing information here.
The second medication is Intuniv. If it gains approval, it will be the second non-stimulant medication on the market. The manufacturer, Shire, announced on June 23, 2007 that is received its approval letter from the FDA , but apparently it still has to supply some information to the FDA before it can go on the market.
You may read the press release here.
The medication is listed as a “alpha-2A-receptor agonist,” If I were Julie, I could describe the functions of the brain and how it works, but I don’t fully understand it. The press release indicates that if it is approved it will be the first medication to act in this way. The press release also indicates that it is for children 6-17 years old.
There is no word as to when we can expect this medication to be approved or on the market.
Disclaimer: I am not a medical professional, and you should consult with a doctor for more information on these medications. I’m just a mom who has to watch things like this.
Thanks for the updates on the new medications!!
- Faith
Remember though, that these meds are considerably more expensive than the older alternatives. It practically took and act of congress to get approval for our adoptive daughter to stay on Straterra when she was moved from one state to another. In fact, it took so long that we had run out, and had begun weaning her off of her meds (under our doctor’s supervision)before we got approval. By then it was a moot point because we had discovered that under all her meds she was a pretty neat kid. Quite often it seems, the foster system will choose the cheaper meds over a better, newer, more expensive one.
One of my sons took Straterra. The sucidal depression was intense and very scary as a parent. The standard side effects of most ADHD meds, no eating or sleeping, are bad but not deadly.
I sure hope these new meds can do their thing without side effects, that would be a wonderful break for a lot of our kids. John
Scraps, you’re right. Our kids don’t always get the best med for them because of price.
John, I’m with you, I hope these work great without side effects.