New guidelines from the Royal Australasian College of Physicians (RACP) and the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) advise healthcare providers not to use medication as a first-line treatment for children who have Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.

A Dec. 1 article by Jennifer Joseph of the Australian website pharmacynews.com.au provided the following information about the policy change:

RACP chairman David Forbes said the new "multimodal" treatment approach would result in fewer children on drugs. "Treatment may include education, psychosocial strategies, behavioral management and changes in nutrition and medication," he said. &

The draft guidelines, which are awaiting formal consideration from the council of the NHMRC, were released despite relying on the research of a US academic whose integrity was under investigation.

"I am pleased that we can finally provide this more up-to-date information on ways to identify and care for those in our community who may be suffering from ADHD," Federal Health Minister Nicola Roxon said.

Labels: medications, treatment, therapy

Posted By: Aspen/CRC