Evidence-Based Reviews

Are psychostimulants useful in pervasive developmental disorders?

Current Psychiatry. 2004 July;3(7):55-65

References

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To help meet this need, the National Institutes of Mental Health’s Research Units on Pediatric Psychopharmacology (RUPP) autism network recently completed a large, double-blind, placebo-controlled study to investigate methylphenidate’s efficacy and tolerability in PDDs. It is anticipated that the results will help us discern whether factors such as PDD subtype, patient age, dosage, or degree of mental retardation are associated with response.

Related resources

Autism Society of America. www.autism-society.org
McDougle CJ. Current and emerging therapeutics of autistic disorder and related pervasive developmental disorders. In: Davis KL, Charney D, Coyle JT, Nemeroff C (eds). Neuropsychopharmacology: The fifth generation of progress. Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2002.
McDougle CJ, Posey DJ. Autistic and other pervasive developmental disorders. In: Martin A, Scahill L, Charney DS, Leckman JF (eds). Pediatric psychopharmacology: Principles and practice.New York: Oxford University Press, 2002.

Drug brand names

Atomoxetine • Strattera
Clomipramine • Anafranil
Clonidine • Catapres
Desipramine • Norpramin
Dextroamphetamine • Dexedrine, Dextrostat
Guanfacine • Tenex
Haloperidol • Haldol
Levoamphetamine • Adderall
Levodopa • Dopar, Laradopa
Methylphenidate • Ritalin
Olanzapine • Zyprexa
Pemoline • Cylert
Risperidone • Risperdal

Disclosure

Dr. Stigler reports no financial relationship with any company whose products are mentioned in this article or with manufacturers of competing products.

Dr. Posey receives research support from Janssen Pharmaceutica and Eli Lilly and Co. and is a speaker for Janssen Pharmaceutica.

Dr. McDougle receives research support from Janssen Pharmaceutica, Pfizer Inc., Eli Lilly and Co., and Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. He is a consultant to or speaker for Janssen Pharmaceutica, Pfizer Inc., Eli Lilly and Co., RepliGen Corp., and Bristol-Myers Squibb Co.

Acknowledgments

This work was supported in part by a Daniel X. Freedman Psychiatric Research Fellowship Award (Dr. Posey), a National Alliance for Research in Schizophrenia and Depression (NARSAD) Young Investigator Award (Dr. Posey), a Research Units on Pediatric Psychopharmacology Grant (U10MH66766-02) from the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) to Indiana University (Dr. McDougle, Dr. Stigler, and Dr. Posey), a Research Career Development Award (K23-MH068627-01) from the NIMH (Dr. Posey), a National Institutes of Health Clinical Research Center grant to Indiana University (M01-RR00750), and a Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) grant (B-01-SP-IN-0200) (Dr. McDougle).