Shire reports results of ADHD survey

Shire has published the results of a survey of parents of children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

According to the results of the questionnaire presented to the annual conference of Children and Adults with ADHD, 60 per cent of mothers surveyed reported that their child’s ADHD medication stopped working before 18:00 every day.

Conducted through the internet, the survey involved 249 parents of children aged between six and 12 with ADHD, with 125 taking stimulant drugs and the remainder treated with non-stimulant therapies.

The survey found that children aged six to twelve usually take their medication between 06:00 and 08:00, with 70 per cent of parents of children taking ADHD stimulant drugs reporting that this treatment lasted 11 hours or less.

Robert Findling, professor of psychiatry at Case Western Reserve University, said: “These survey results illustrate that parents may not see their children’s ADHD medications working until 18:00.”

He added that these results could prove important, with ADHD affecting not only a child’s performance at school, but also their relationships with friends and family members outside of school hours.

In July 2007, Shire reported that its recently-launched treatment for ADHD, Vyvanse (lisdexamfetamine dimesylate), had been shown in clinical studies to consistently and effectively control the condition.