Joan Daughton, MD

Each year in this country, physicians prescribe medications to treat  ADHD in nearly 3 million children. The safety of these agents has been the  subject of some debate.

Here to discuss the issue of the cardiovascular safety of stimulants,  atomoxetine, and alpha-agonists used to manage ADHD is Joan Daughton, MD,  Assistant Professor of Child Psychiatry at the University of Nebraska Medical  Center in Omaha. Dr Daughton is also Training Director of the  Creighton-Nebraska Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Training Program and Post  Pediatrics Portal Program at the University of Nebraska Medical Center.

Dr Daughton also details the essentials of a  baseline assessment and cardiovascular evaluation before ADHD therapy is  initiated and briefly reviews scientific statements issued jointly by the 

 on the overall  safety of medications to treat ADHD and specifically in children with  underlying cardiovascular abnormalities.


 • Cooper WO, Habel LA, Sox CM, et al. ADHD drugs and serious  cardiovascular events in children and young adults. 

http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1110212

. Accessed October 17, 2012.
 • Treatment of ADHD in children with tics: a randomized controlled  trial. Tourette's Syndrome Study Group. 

 2002;58:527-536. 
 • Vetter VL, Elia J, Erickson C, et al. Cardiovascular monitoring of  children and adolescents with heart disease receiving medications for attention  deficit/hyperactivity disorder: a scientific statement from the American Heart  Association Council on Cardiovascular Disease in the Young Congenital Defects  Committee and the Council on Cardiovascular Nursing. 

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Each year in this country, physicians prescribe medications to treat ADHD in nearly 3 million children. The safety of these agents has been the subject of some debate.

Author | Joan Daughton, MD

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ADHD Medications: A Look at Their Safety Profile