Trial reportThe Journal of head trauma rehabilitation
Benefits of Methylphenidate for Long-Term Attention Problems After Traumatic Brain Injury in Childhood: A Randomized, Double-Masked, Placebo-Controlled, Dose-Titration, Crossover Trial.
Trial report in The Journal of head trauma rehabilitation. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 12 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
12 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 21 citations in OpenAlex.
- A meta-analytic review of the impact of ADHD medications on anxiety and depression in children and adolescents.European child & adolescent psychiatry · 2023Pooled it
- Influence of Methylphenidate on Long-Term Neuropsychological and Everyday Executive Functioning After Traumatic Brain Injury in Children with Secondary Attention Problems.Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society : JINS · 2019Trial
- Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder as a moderator of the efficacy of family-based problem solving after pediatric traumatic brain injury.Rehabilitation psychology · 2026Article
- Neuropharmacology in pediatric traumatic brain injury.Journal of pediatric rehabilitation medicine · 2026Review
- Efficacy of Methylphenidate in Patients With Brain Disease: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Brain & NeuroRehabilitation · 2025Article
- SK609, a novel dopamine D3 receptor agonist and norepinephrine transporter blocker with putative pro-cognitive actions, does not induce psychostimulant-like increases in risky choice during probabilistic discounting.Psychopharmacology · 2025Article
- CORRELATION BETWEEN TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY, OBESITY AND INSULIN-RESISTANCE - A CASE REPORT.Journal of rehabilitation medicine. Clinical communications · 2025Article
- Abnormal structural and functional network topological properties associated with left prefrontal, parietal, and occipital cortices significantly predict childhood TBI-related attention deficits: A semi-supervised deep learning study.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2023Article
- Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor Val66Met and Behavioral Adjustment after Early Childhood Traumatic Brain Injury.Journal of neurotrauma · 2022Article
- Advances in Understanding the Association Between Pediatric Traumatic Brain Injury and Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder.JAMA pediatrics · 2021Article
- Topological Aberrance of Structural Brain Network Provides Quantitative Substrates of Post-Traumatic Brain Injury Attention Deficits in Children.Brain connectivity · 2021Article
- Impact of Secondary ADHD on Long-Term Outcomes After Early Childhood Traumatic Brain Injury.The Journal of head trauma rehabilitationArticle
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
objectiveTo characterize the benefits and optimal dose of long-acting methylphenidate for management of long-term attention problems after childhood traumatic brain injury (TBI).
designPhase 2, randomized, double-masked, placebo-controlled, dose-titration, crossover clinical trial.
settingOutpatient, clinical research.
participantsTwenty-six children aged 6 to 17 years who were at least 6 months post-TBI and met criteria for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) at the time of enrollment. OUTCOME MEASURES: Vanderbilt Rating Scale of attention problems, Pittsburgh Side Effects Rating Scale, and vital signs.
resultsAmong the 26 participants randomized, 20 completed the trial. The mean ages at injury and enrollment were 6.3 and 11.5 years, respectively. Eight participants had a severe TBI. On an optimal dose of medication, greater reductions were found on the Vanderbilt Parent Rating Scale for the medicated condition than for placebo (P = .022, effect size = 0.59). The mean optimal dose of methylphenidate was 40.5 mg (1.00 mg/kg/day). Preinjury ADHD diagnosis status was not associated with a differential medication response. Methylphenidate was associated with weight loss (∼1 kg), increased systolic blood pressure (∼3- to 6-point increase), and mild reported changes in appetite.
conclusionFindings support use of long-acting methylphenidate for management of long-term attention problems after pediatric TBI. Larger trials are warranted of stimulant medications, including comparative effectiveness and combination medication and nonmedication interventions.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.