CardioExchange Archive

CardioExchange, an NEJM practice community for medical professionals dedicated to improving cardiac patient care, was active from 2009 to 2015. CardioExchange fostered discussion between clinicians from across the globe.

November 1st, 2011

No Increased Risk for CV Events with ADHD Drugs, Large Study Finds

A large new study may help lay to rest concerns that the widely prescribed ADHD drugs may increase the risk for cardiovascular (CV) events.

In a study funded by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality and the FDA and published in the New England Journal of Medicine, William Cooper and colleagues analyzed data from 1.2 million children and young adults between 2 and 24 years of age who were enrolled in four health plans; 373,667 person-years of current ADHD drug use were included.

The investigators found a low rate of serious CV events (3.1 per 100,000 person-years) and no increase in risk for those taking ADHD drugs (adjusted HR 0.75, CI 0.31-1.85). The authors concluded that although their results did not find any increased risk, due to the wide confidence interval they were unable to rule out the possibility of a doubling in risk. “However,” they wrote, “the absolute magnitude of any increased risk would be low.”

Categories: General, Prevention
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2 Responses to “No Increased Risk for CV Events with ADHD Drugs, Large Study Finds”

  1. Dan Hackam, MD PhD says:
    November 2, 2011 at 7:39 pm

    Not certain: the upper limit of the 95% CI is 1.85, and given the numbers of adults going onto these drugs (ADHD being an emerging problem in young adulthood), even a low absolute magnitude of risk could translate into thousands or tens of thousands of events per year.

  2. William L Blanchet, MD says:
    November 3, 2011 at 11:37 pm

    A study in subjects age 2-24 hardly has relevant implications for the adults being treated with these drugs. The title of this article should be “No Increased Risk for CV Events in children with ADHD Drugs, Large Study Finds”