Psychotropic medication for ADHD

Psychotropic medication treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disord er (ADHD) has prominently increased over the last three decades such that a n estimated 2 to 2.5 million youths in the United States now receive this t reatment. Stimulants have been and remain the primary prescribed medication group to treat this disorder, even though the variety of medication treatm ents has expanded in recent years. The major reasons for the increased prev alence of stimulant treatment are: increases in the diagnostic pool-particu larly the inclusion of more youths with predominantly inattentive ADHD; the great number of girls receiving this medication; increases in the duration of treatment; and a greater public acceptance of the psychopharmacologic t reatment of youth. Demographic factors, school placement, geographic locati on, service system differences, and the specialty of the treating physician all influence the prevalence of medication treatment, and the impact of th ese factors will be described. Briefly reviewed at the conclusion are the u se of non-stimulant medication treatments, multiple and concomitant medicat ion treatments for ADHD, and international differences in prescribing patte rns. (C) 1999 Wiley-Liss. Inc.