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Atomoxetine Effective for Adolescents With ADHD, Particularly for Oppositionality: Presented at APA

By Bruce Sylvester

SAN FRANCISCO, CA -- May 27, 2003 -- Atomoxetine effectively treats core symptoms of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and oppositional behavior in adolescents.

The researchers reported their findings in a poster presentation here on May 21^st at the 2003 Annual Meeting of the American Psychiatric Association.

"Past studies of ADHD have focused primarily on children, but scant attention has been paid to adolescents," the authors wrote in their poster. To determine the efficacy of atomoxetine in ADHD, the researchers analyzed results of 2 randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled studies that compared the results from adolescents and children.

The investigators randomized 120 subjects aged 12 to 18 years to 6-8 weeks of double-blind treatment with atomoxetine (71 patients) or placebo (49 patients). They evaluated ADHD symptom improvement according to changes in ADHD Rating Scale (ADHD RS) inattentive and hyperactive/impulsive total and subscale scores. Similarly, they gauged improvement in oppositionality by changes in the Conners Parent Rating Scale (CPRS) Oppositional subscale.

Results show that subjects treated with atomoxetine had statistically significant improvement in ADHD RS total scores compared with placebo subjects (P=0.009). They also show significant improvement in the ADHD RS inattentive (P=0.018) and hyperactive/impulsive (P=0.051) subscales scores, and the CPRS Oppositional subscale score (P=0.037).

"This confirms, with some emphasis on efficacy for oppositional behavior, the therapeutic value of this agent for adolescents as well as for younger children," said Douglas K. Kelsey, MD, a researcher at Lilly Laboratories in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. "This study helps us fill out the picture not only of the usefulness of the drug but of the fact that ADHD does not end at 12, and, for many, not even by age 18."

The research was supported by Eli Lilly and Company.


[Study title: Efficacy of Atomoxetine Treatment for Adolescents With ADHD. Abstract NR643]

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