The world’s first long term data review, puublished by the Western Australian Department of Health, argued that "that there is little long-term benefit of stimulant medication in the core symptoms of ADHD."
The report also stated that, where ADHD medications had an effect "... on externalising behaviour and attentional problems ..." the effect "... was in the direction of symptoms worsening with the use of ADHD medication".
In addition the research found that long term use of stimulants correlated with an increase in diastolic blood pressure. The full report can be downloaded (PDF) from http://is.gd/97NIq.
This research study was a collaboration between the Ministerial Implementation Committee for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in Western Australia (MICADHD) and the Telethon Institute for Child Health Research (TICHR), with funding provided by the Western Australian Department of Health (DOH).
