Hi!

I am the father of a 7-year-old boy. He has always been very inattentive and active. His teacher suggested that I ask his pediatrician about possible Attention Deficit Disorder. We went, my son had a physical exam and we filled out a variety of forms with questions and our doctor is now recommending that our son take medication to help him concentrate. Our doctor also talked with the teacher. I am worried about using these. I have read on the Internet that we are using too many medications in children and this can lead to problems later on.

We have some family history of mental illness, which also worries me. How do you tell what medications are good and which are bad? How do you know what the right dose is? I do trust our pediatrician but this whole topic seems to be very controversial.

Could you help us?

Confused in California

Answer:

Dear Confused,

You ask a very good question and you are right to be confused about the use of medications to treat behavior, particularly in children.

It sounds like you are off to a good start in seeing your pediatrician and checking on the Internet about these issues. It is good that you filled out questionnaires and particularly good that your doctor took the time to do a physical examination and to talk with your son’s teacher.

The assessment process, diagnosis and treatment of the “behavioral” disorders in children are very complex and there are a number of important things to consider as a parent. It would take me a long time to give you an inclusive answer to your question.

Fortunately, there is a recently published book written for parents by a very experienced child psychiatrist. It is called Medicating Young Minds. I have read it and think it will answer just about any question you might have about what behaviors might cause concern, selecting a professional to treat your child, how the diagnosis is made and what information is particularly helpful and important. There is a long section that talks about the diagnosis of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder as well as discussion of current research of different treatments available and their outcome.

The book also discusses other psychiatric disorders in children and treatment options. There is even a section on alternative treatments, including herbal.

I have had a fair amount of experience in the diagnosis and treatment of Attentional Problems in children. However, even I found this book helpful in that it clearly describes how a parent should go about assessing their child’s behavioral difficulties and going about getting their child treatment. It gives parents a framework in which to look at their child’s problems. It is amazingly medically complete for a book that is written for parents about their children.

I believe that reading this book should be very helpful in educating you about the decisions that you have ahead of you in assessment and treatment of your child’s attentional difficulties.

Kay S. Browne MD
Behavioral Pediatrician