Highlights:
- According
to SAMHSA's Drug Abuse Warning Network (DAWN) for 2004, an estimated
7,873 drug-related emergency department visits involved methylphenidate
or amphetamine-dextroamphetamine, two medications used to treat attention
deficit/ hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
- The
most frequent reason for these ADHD stimulant medication related visits
was nonmedical use (48%), followed by adverse reactions associated with
medical use (34%), accidental ingestion (10%), and suicide attempts
(8%).
- The
rates of DAWN emergency department visits involving methylphenidate
or amphetamine-dextroamphetamine for patients aged 12 to 17 were higher
than the rates for patients aged 18 or older.
- About
68% of the DAWN emergency department visits involving nonmedical
use of
methylphenidate or amphetamine-dextroamphetamine also involved another
substance (such as alcohol, an illicit drug, or a pharmaceutical).
Data
on other specific drugs
Other
topics
Other
OAS publications and services
This Short
Report, The
New DAWN Report: Emergency Department Visits Involving ADHD Stimulant
Medications, is based on the Drug
Abuse Warning Network (DAWN), the primary source of national data
on drug related emergency department visits. DAWN is conducted by
the Office of Applied Studies (OAS) in the Substance
Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).
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