Skip to main content

ADHD Drug Treatment Linked to Reduced Rate of Adverse Outcomes

Medically reviewed by Carmen Pope, BPharm. Last updated on Aug 14, 2025.

via HealthDay

THURSDAY, Aug. 14, 2025 -- Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) drug treatment is associated with reduced rates of adverse outcome events, including suicidality, substance misuse, transport accidents, and criminality, according to a study published online Aug. 13 in The BMJ.

Le Zhang, M.P.H., from the Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm, and colleagues examined the effects of drug treatment for ADHD on suicidal behaviors, substance misuse, accidental injuries, transport accidents, and criminality in an emulation of target trials involving people aged 6 to 64 years with a new diagnosis of ADHD. First and recurrent events of five outcomes were examined over two years after ADHD diagnosis.

Of 148,581 individuals with ADHD, 56.7 percent started drug treatment for ADHD; methylphenidate was prescribed most commonly at initiation (88.4 percent). The researchers found that drug treatment for ADHD was associated with significantly reduced rates of the first occurrence of suicidal behaviors, substance misuse, transport accidents, and criminality (adjusted incidence rate ratios, 0.83, 0.85, 0.88, and 0.87, respectively), while the reduction in accidental injuries was not statistically significant. Individuals with previous events had more pronounced reduced rates, with incidence rate ratios varying from 0.79 to 0.97 for suicidal behaviors and accidental injuries, respectively. Drug treatment was significantly associated with reduced rates of all five outcomes for recurrent events (0.85, 0.75, 0.96, 0.84, and 0.75 for suicidal behaviors, substance misuse, accidental injuries, transport accidents, and criminality, respectively).

"These results provide evidence on the effects of ADHD drug treatment on important health related and social outcomes that should inform clinical practice and the debate on the drug treatment of ADHD," the authors write.

Two authors disclosed ties to the pharmaceutical industry.

Abstract/Full Text

Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.

© 2025 HealthDay. All rights reserved.

Read this next

Drop in Hospital Salaries, Staffing Reported After Private Equity Acquisitions

FRIDAY, Sept. 26, 2025 -- U.S. hospitals that undergo private equity acquisition may reduce salaries and staffing after acquisition, especially in emergency departments (EDs) and...

Poor Mental Health Outcomes More Likely With Hyperemesis Gravidarum

FRIDAY, Sept. 26, 2025 -- Hyperemesis gravidarum is associated with an increased risk for poorer mental health outcomes compared with pregnancy without hyperemesis gravidarum...

Personal Storytelling During Medical Training Aids Learning

THURSDAY, Sept. 25, 2025 -- A student-led program in which medical students share their own personal stories with illness during a preclinical curriculum enhances learning...

More news resources

Subscribe to our newsletter

Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.