Does Combined Stimulant and Psychosocial Treatment in Childhood Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Protect Against Future Substance Use?

ABSTRACT:

Objective

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a risk factor for future substance use. Stimulant medication has largely failed to demonstrate protection against future substance use, but no studies have assessed whether combined stimulant and psychosocial treatment reduces future substance use compared with stimulants alone.

Method

This retrospective study used data from the Rochester Epidemiology Project, a medical records repository in Olmsted County, Minnesota, to identify 1,541 children ≤7 years old who were prescribed a stimulant for ADHD between 2003 and 2019. Of children, 40% (n = 628) also received psychosocial treatment. Data on substance use after age 10 were gathered from the medical record until 2023, comprising up to 17 years of follow-up. Logistic

SUBMITTER: Bommersbach TJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12684646 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature