ADHD
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder - Concerta Prescription Drug
delays release of Methylphenidate may be less Addictive
March 7th, 2006
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Concerta |
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Researchers from
Massachusetts General Hospital are looking at alternative medications
that will delay the release of the methylphenidate used to treat
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). By delaying the
release of medication it will be less addictive and not be abused. The
report was first reported in the March 2006 issue of The American
Journal of Psychiatry.
"We know that
drugs that cause euphoria are potentially abusable, and euphoria
requires rapid delivery to the brain. Using sophisticated PET scan
imaging, we were able to examine the rate of delivery of both rapid- and
delayed-release formulations of methylphenidate and correlate those
results with how the drugs felt to study volunteers," said Thomas
Spencer, MD, of the Massachusetts General Hospital Pediatric
Psychopharmacology Unit, and an associate professor of Psychiatry at
Harvard Medical School. He is also the lead author of this project.
"The ability to show that rate of brain delivery may determine abuse
potential is important to our understanding of the safety of different
formulations."
In other research
studies, it has been shown that ADHD brains have an abnormal regulation
of dopamine. Dopamine is a naturally occurring chemical process in the
brain, which helps in controlling movement, behavior, and attention.
The methylphenidate as well as other drugs will block the dopamine
transporter, which will help raise the dopamine level in the brain. The
side effect to these drugs is the potential for a patient to become
addicted to the drug and abuse it. The researchers wanted to compare
two different formulations of methylphenidate to see if they could come
up with a less addictive drug.
The researchers
selected a traditional (Ritalin) quick-release form of the
methylphenidate and compared it against Concerta, which is a 12 hour
time-released formulation of the methylphenidate. The participants were
12 adults that had been diagnosed with ADHD or any other neurological or
psychiatric disorder. They were randomly assigned either the quick
release or time release versions for a two day time period.
The researchers
measured the brain activity using a PET scan to see the dopamine
transporter molecule before the medication and at 3 hours after the
first day. They measured again after the second dose on the next day
after 5 and 7 hours. They took blood samples on both days, 10 hours
after taking the medication. The participants were asked on an hourly
basis if they had any pleasurable side effects by taking the medication
and whether it was liked or disliked.
The participants
that took the time released medicine did not report liking the medicine
compared to the group that had a quick release version. The delayed
release medication took longer to achieve maximum blood levels and cause
the dopamine transporter to be blocked.
"The differing
reports on feeling and liking the drug effects occurred despite using
larger doses of the delayed-release formulation and the equivalent peak
blood and brain levels," said Spencer. "Previous studies have showed
that both versions are effective for treating ADHD. Whether delayed- or
sustained-release formulations of other potentially abusable ADHD drugs
share the same safety characteristics needs be studied, since different
forms vary in the levels and timing of drug delivery."
ADHD children are
also being researched in UK for Fish oil supplementation. It seems like
nutritional approaches have also shown positive effects as well. A
recent Best Syndication article by Dan Wilson said the following on
serotonin, “There are some things you can do to increase serotonin
levels. According to the book, "Your Miracle Brain," by Jean Carper,
when depressed people take SAM-e, there’s evidence of increased
serotonin and dopamine in their nervous systems. Another supplement
that may promote production serotonin is 5-HTP (hydroxytryptophan).”
Nicole Wilson
Best Syndication
Books on ADHD
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