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Adults with ADHD: use and misuse of stimulant medication as reported by patients and their primary care physicians

  • Original Article
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ADHD Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorders

Abstract

This study investigated the agreement on treatment for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) between adults with ADHD and the primary care physicians responsible for their treatment. Adults with ADHD and the primary care physicians responsible for their ADHD treatment completed a survey. The κ-statistic assessed physician–patient agreement on ADHD treatment variables. The eligible sample consisted of 274 patients with confirmed current or previous psychopharmacological treatment for ADHD and the physicians responsible for their treatment. We received 159 questionnaires (58.0 %) with sufficient information from both sources. There were no significant differences between participants and nonparticipants (N = 115) on ADHD sample characteristics. Participants’ mean age was 37.6 years, and 75 (47.2 %) were females. There was high agreement for current pharmacological treatment for ADHD, current and last ADHD drug prescription, treatment for substance use, and misuse of stimulant medication. Agreement for nonpharmacological treatment for ADHD and treatment termination because of the side effects was low. A minority of participants from both sources reported misuse of stimulant medication. There was a moderate correlation between the physicians’ clinical judgment and patients’ self-report on current functioning. The study showed that primary care physicians and their patients agreed on the pharmacological but not the nonpharmacological, treatments given. They also agreed on patients’ current functioning. Physicians and patients reported low levels of misuse of stimulant medication. The results show that pharmacological treatment for adults with ADHD can be safely undertaken by primary care physicians.

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Acknowledgments

The study has been made possible by financial support from the Norwegian Directorate of Health, Oslo, Norway.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Women and Children’s Division, Oslo University Hospital, Ullevål, Building 31 B, 2nd Floor, Nydalen, P.O. Box 4956, 0424, Oslo, Norway

    Michael B. Lensing

  2. Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway

    Pål Zeiner & Stein Opjordsmoen

  3. Unit of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway

    Leiv Sandvik

  4. Faculty of Medicine, Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway

    Stein Opjordsmoen

Authors
  1. Michael B. Lensing
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  2. Pål Zeiner
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  3. Leiv Sandvik
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  4. Stein Opjordsmoen
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Correspondence to Michael B. Lensing.

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Lensing, M.B., Zeiner, P., Sandvik, L. et al. Adults with ADHD: use and misuse of stimulant medication as reported by patients and their primary care physicians. ADHD Atten Def Hyp Disord 5, 369–376 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12402-013-0116-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12402-013-0116-8

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