Atomoxetine in the Management of Children with ADHD: Effects on Quality of Life and School Functioning

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine in a controlled trial the effects of atomoxetine on the management of attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms and functional impairments at school and at home. Participants were 153 children (age 8 to 12 years) diagnosed with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder who were randomized to double-blind treatment with either atomoxetine (n = 101) or placebo (n = 52). Findings revealed significant improvements both for parent and teacher ratings of behavior for children receiving atomoxetine therapy. Children also were reported to evidence a trend toward better response to active medication than to placebo for health-related quality of life as rated by parents. No significant effects were revealed for the teacher ratings of academic productivity. Data were interpreted to provide support for the efficacy of atomoxetine on the symptoms associated with ADHD. The effects of atomoxetine on other functional outcomes including academic performance and health-related outcomes are of interest, albeit less compelling for this particular investigation, than for the effects on overt symptom display.

The quality of life of children with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder: a systematic review

“…During the development of the parent version of the Child Health Questionnaire (CHQ-PF50), Landgraf et al [42] reported that an ADHD sample were rated as having significantly lower scores on the psychosocial summary score and the psychosocial and family subscales (behaviour, mental health, self-esteem, role limitations-emotional/behavioural, parental impact-emotional and time, family activities and family cohesion), compared to their norm group. These findings were replicated in several clinical ADHD samples which used the CHQ and compared children with ADHD to either healthy controls [26, 32, 75] or US norms [15, 38, 39, 45, 46, 52, 57, 58, 64, 97]. Differences have been reported for both male and female subjects.…”

“…Placebo)CHQParent293 ADHD, 39% with ODD8 weeksYouths with ADHD and comorbid ODD showed greater improvement in QoL on ATX than placebo. Treatment response was similar in youths with and without ODD, except that the comorbid group only improved at higher doses Brown et al [15]RCT (ATX vs. Placebo)CHQParent1537 weeksParent reported QoL demonstrated a trend toward better response to ATX than to placebo Perwien et al [58]Open label trial; extension of RCTs (ATX)CHQParent912 ADHD, 312 completed long term trial and included in outcome analyses24 monthsSignificant improvements were observed on the psychosocial summary scale, and all psychosocial domains but not the physical health domains following acute treatment with atomoxetine.…”

Social and Emotional Impairment in Children and Adolescents with ADHD and the Impact on Quality of Life

“…For example, the QoL of children and adolescents with ADHD has been shown to improve over time when on medication [16,18,[93][94][95][96][97][98][99]. More specifically, a number of studies have shown the improvement of self-esteem in children and adolescents with treatment for ADHD.…”

Spotlight on Atomoxetine in Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in Children and Adolescents†

“…[19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26] Atomoxetine also demonstrated efficacy in the longer term treatment of these patients. [27,28] A single morning dose was shown to be effective into the evening, [21,26] and discontinuation of atomoxetine was not associated with symptom rebound.…”

“…[17] The majority of adverse events were mild or moderate; [34][35][36]38,40] there was a very low incidence of serious adverse events. [19,[21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28]33,35,[37][38][39][40][41]43,44] Few patients discontinued atomoxetine treatment because of adverse events. [17] Atomoxetine discontinuation appeared to be well tolerated, with a low incidence of discontinuation-emergent adverse events.…”