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OROS Methylphenidate Treatment Does Not Affect Height and Weight in Children With Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: Presented at AACAP

By Paula Moyer

MIAMI BEACH, FL -- October 28, 2003 -- Children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) who receive osmotic release oral system (OROS) methylphenidate (Concerta) have very little difference in height and weight from the general population, according to findings presented here October 16^th at the 50^th Anniversary Meeting of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.

These findings should be reassuring to physicians, and will be helpful to them in consultations with parents, according to co-author Frank Meloni, PhD, researcher, McNeil Consumer & Specialty Pharmaceuticals, Fort Washington, Pennsylvania, United States. McNeil Consumer & Specialty Pharmaceuticals are the manufacturers of Concerta.

"With any stimulant, there is concern about growth, because one of the adverse effects can be suppressed appetite," said Dr. Meloni. "It looks as if long-term therapy with OROS methylphenidate does not have this effect. The appetite suppression resolves after the first month of treatment."

Dr. Meloni and colleagues analysed data from two long-term open trials of patients with ADHD who were treated with OROS methylphenidate. The trials were 9 and 24 months in duration, respectively. The combined studies involved 1,116 children with ADHD who ranged in age from 5 to 12 years old, and 269 children who were 13 to 17 years old.

The younger children's average height z-score at baseline was 0.23 and 0.18 at the study's last observation carried forward (LOCF), which constituted a 2-percentile difference in expected height. The mean weight z-score was 0.56 at baseline and 0.36 at LOCF, which constituted a 7-percentile difference from the children's expected weight.

For the older children, the mean height z-score was 0.26 at baseline and 0.15 at LOCF, a 1-percentile difference in expected height. Their mean weight z-score was 0.65 at baseline and 0.62 at LOCF, also a 1-percentile difference in expected weight.

These findings show that long-term treatment with OROS methylphenidate has minimal effect on height and weight, and therefore should not discourage physicians from using this treatment option for ADHD, Dr. Meloni said.

This study was funded by McNeil Consumer & Specialty Pharmaceuticals.


[Study Title: OROS MPH ADHD Therapy: Height and Weight Effects: Abstract A12]

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