Vyvanse in Canada
ByUpdated January 3, 2011:
Vyvanse was officially launched in Canada on February 1, 2010.
When it was first launched – it was only officially approved for use in children – aged 6-12 years old. As of November 2010, Vyvanse is now officially indicated for use in ADHD in children (6-12 years old), teenagers (13-18 years old), and adults (18-65 years old). This means that Vyvanse is now officially indicated in Canada for use in ADHD ‘across the lifespan’ – i.e. from childhood to adulthood.
Dosage of Vyvanse in Canada:
Vyvanse is available in these dosage strengths in Canada: 20 mg, 30 mg, 40 mg, 50 mg, and 60 mg.
In the US, there is also a 70 mg capsule – but Health Canada wasn’t convinced that it was needed – so for now, the highest dose capsule that we have in Canada is the 60 mg.
Doctors will generally start with a lower dose (often 30 mg) and then increase to a higher dose (often 50 mg). Of course, your doctor will tailor the treatment to your needs.
Vyvanse is a the first prodrug for ADHD. This means that the medication is inactive until an enzyme in the body works to activate it. To read more about how it works, visit this blog post on Vyvanse.
To read the press release on Vyvanse being released in Canada, please view it here.
This blog has several articles on Vyvanse, but my favorite is the one where my readers have shared their experiences with Vyvanse (over 800 comments at this time) about whether Vyvanse works.
You can find more articles by looking at the ‘related posts’ below this article.
Please share any comments or issues with Vyvanse being in Canada below.
Best,
Dr. Kenny
My son who is 5 and recently diagnosed started taking Vyvanse about 2 weeks ago. We started him off on 20 mg and put him on 30 mg today. Teachers noticed less impulsivity and focusing improvement on him being on 30 mg. We also noticed that it took a longer time before Vyvanse started to wear off. We are currently on wait list at your office but would very much want information if there should be something you are aware of that we should keep our eyes on for the next couple of weeks. Has there been any report on downhill effect of Vyvanse? He has never been on any meds before, but this is what our pediatrician prescribed because according to him, it is apparently the “Trend”. Our pediatrician is not well versed on the ADHD meds and at one point I went back to him to prescribe my son 20mg that he did not know is the lowest dosage available in Canada.
Hello Joanne,
As we are reading your comments regarding the benefit of does increase from 20 mg to 30 mg which we are currently in the same situation with our 6 years old son, we wonder if you have experienced side effects with the higher does. We just started today 12/27/2011 to give him the 30mg after two weeks of 20 mg usage. We are a kind of worried of side effects with higher does. Can you tell us if you have experience any changes with the 30mg other than improvement academically in his concentration span while he is doing his home work at home?
Regards,
Adel & Samar Yasso
How does the cost of Vyvanse in Canada compare to the cost in the US? Is it possible to send a US Vyvanse prescription to a Canadian pharmacy to fill and mail to me?