Medication for ADHD and Dyslexia
At the recent scientific meeting of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, a study was released which documented that Strattera improved ADHD and Reading Disorder (dyslexia). I will summarize this study here, but if you want to read the full report, please visit here.
In this study, children aged 10-16 were treated with Strattera for their ADHD for 16 weeks. There were two main groups - children who had ADHD alone, compared to children who had ADHD plus a Reading Disorder (Dyslexia).
At the end of the study, there was approximately a 50% improvement in ADHD symptoms in both groups.
The interesting difference came when looking at improvement in reading scores. The ADHD and Reading Disorder group had a 2 year improvement in their reading scores, compared to a 17 month improvement in the ADHD group.
Although Strattera is not approved for the treatment of Reading Disorder/Dyslexia, these are encouraging results.
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Written by Dr. Kenny Handelman - The ADHD Doctor
To find get a FREE special report on ADD/ADHD Medication, visit: Medication Mastery
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November 3rd, 2006 at 3:31 pm
I have a 10 year old son, who has ADHD as well as a reading disorder. He is taking Aderall Xr. Will this medication give the same results as the strattera? Or should I look at making a change in meds?
Thanks. Angie
November 3rd, 2006 at 3:39 pm
Angie,
Thank you for the great question.
If your son has ADHD and a Reading Disorder (dyslexia) and he is
taking Adderall XR, the question you need to ask is:
Is he doing great with the treatment we have in place now?
If the answer is yes, then there is no need to change the medicine.
If the answer is no, then you need to evaluate all aspects of the treatment:
1) what supports are in place for the learning disability
2) what strategies is the school using to help with academic success
3) what are you doing at home to help
4) and the medication
etc.
One main point I want you to understand is how scientific information is discovered: It is one study at a time, and each study has to be evaluated in the context of all of the previous studies.
So, just because this study shows that Strattera helps ADHD with Reading Disorder (Dyslexia), doesn’t mean that you should stop your son’s Adderall XR and switch him to Strattera, especially if he is doing well with the current medicine.
I hope that helps.
November 3rd, 2006 at 7:22 pm
Thank you for answering my question so quickly. My son is doing very well on his meds, and the school is doing a great job supporting him. I will look forward to future studies on this .
Thanks again
Angie
November 18th, 2006 at 4:33 am
My question is can you take ADHD medication and still pilot a commercial aircraft? I know you don’t deal with adults but I was hoping you could answer the quesstion or point me in the right direction. My friend is a commercial pilot and feels he may have ADHD, but is afraid to ask anyone about this, for fear he may loose his job.
Thanks, Angie
November 18th, 2006 at 12:22 pm
Angie,
Great question - I am going to make this a whole post in and of itself.
Even though I am not sure about the answer - we will see if any of our readers knows…
September 22nd, 2007 at 8:20 pm
About the question on becoming a pilot the answer is no. But however if you can prove to a doctor that you can function without your medican you will still have a chance. This is what happened to me.