ArticleBMC psychiatry2018
Effects of long-term methylphenidate use on growth and blood pressure: results of the German Health Interview and Examination Survey for Children and Adolescents (KiGGS).
Article in BMC psychiatry, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 9 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
9 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 25 citations in OpenAlex.
- Methylphenidate for children and adolescents with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2023Pooled it
- Dual Effects of ADHD Pharmacotherapy on Nutrition: A Scoping Review of Appetite, Eating Behavior, and Growth Across the Lifespan.Nutrients · 2026Article
- The Impact of Stimulant Medications on Blood Pressure and Body Mass Index in Children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.Academic pediatrics · 2024Observational
- Rehmanniae Radix Preparata ameliorates behavioral deficits and hippocampal neurodevelopmental abnormalities in ADHD rat model.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2024Article
- The World Federation of ADHD International Consensus Statement: 208 Evidence-based conclusions about the disorder.Neuroscience and biobehavioral reviews · 2021Review
- Review
- The Association between Low Blood Pressure and Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) Observed in Children/Adolescents Does Not Persist into Young Adulthood. A Population-Based Ten-Year Follow-Up Study.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021Article
- Enhanced Nitric Oxide (NO) and Decreased ADMA Synthesis in Pediatric ADHD and Selective Potentiation of NO Synthesis by Methylphenidate.Journal of clinical medicine · 2020Article
- Neurofeedback in ADHD: A qualitative study of strategy use in slow cortical potential training.PloS one · 2020Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
22 authors at 17 institutions in 10 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundConcerns have been raised over the safety of methylphenidate (MPH), with regard to adverse effects on growth and blood pressure. Our study investigates whether, and to what extent, methylphenidate use in boys with ADHD is associated with having low body mass index (BMI), having low height, and increased systolic and diastolic blood pressure.
methodsData used for this study stem from the German KiGGS dataset. Three different groups of boys aged 6-15 years were included in the analysis: ADHD patients who used MPH for less than 12 months; ADHD patients who used MPH for 12 months or more; and ADHD patients without current MPH treatment. Each of these three groups was compared to a non-ADHD control group regarding low weight (BMI ≤ 3rd percentile), low height (≤3rd percentile) and raised systolic and diastolic blood pressure. For growth outcomes, boys were categorized according to age (< 11 years/≥11 years, to account for pubertal maturation). Multivariable logistic regression was conducted to test for associations.
results4244 boys were included in the study; MPH < 12 months: n = 65 (n = 36 < 11 years), MPH ≥ 12 months: n = 53 (n = 22 < 11 years), ADHD controls: n = 320 (n = 132 < 11 years), non-ADHD controls: n = 3806 (n = 2003 < 11 years). Pre-pubertal boys with MPH use less than 12 months and pubertal/postpubertal boys with MPH use of 12 months or greater were significantly more likely to have a BMI ≤ 3rd percentile compared to non-ADHD controls. Boys from the ADHD control group were significantly less likely to have a raised systolic blood pressure compared to non-ADHD controls. Beyond that, no significant between group differences were observed for any other growth and BP parameter.
conclusionThe analyses of the KiGGS dataset showed that MPH use in boys with ADHD is associated with low BMI. However, this effect was only observed in certain groups. Furthermore, our analysis was unable to confirm that MPH use is also associated with low height (≤3rd percentile) and changes in blood pressure.
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