Do you know that there is a shortage of Ritalin and Adderall in many college cities?   The shortage also exists in other regions, but it seems more critical in the college towns. There are some 6 million children (4 to 17) have been diagnosed with ADHD, which is about the same amount of adults that are suspected to have the symptoms (Centers for Disease Control estimates). These folks need daily doses of the medicine- and it is virtually impossible to obtain more than one month supply, due to regulation of the drugs by the FDA.

However, it seems the shortage is due to too many adults are faking the symptoms to get the drugs.  (It is not clear if the manufacturers are slowing down production, that would amplify the shortages.) A recent survey found that 22% of the adults who are seeking treatment for ADHD are faking or exaggerating their symptoms, to insure they can receive the drug. Dr. Paul Marshall (lead author, Hennepin Faculty Associates, Minneapolis, MN) presented these unfortunate findings involved with 268 adults at various centers in the Clinical Neuropsychologist.  (A less scientific poll was effected by Truth On Call (for msnbc.com), which provides physicians with 1 or 2 multiple choice questions  on their cell phones. This survey found 38% of the physicians suspected bogus requests for ADHD diagnoses.)

It should be noted that some adults did have ADHD, but they augmented their complaints to obtain the medicine.  But, many more did not fit the ADHD definition.  Some of the 268 adults had different maladies including depression, anxiety, or insufficient sleep.   Marshall’s group determined this by seeding the questionnaires with questions that are not normally asked, and allowed the examiners to notice exaggerations or fake claims more readily.

Being diagnosed with ADHD affords the patient the ability to obtain prescription drugs that augment concentration and focus.  Some folks want these drugs because the amphetamine based drug provides a “high”.   The drugs prescribed for ADHD amplify dopamine and norepinephrine levels in the brain (thereby stimulating it).  If one has ADHD, the drugs serve to calm the brain.  If administered to non-ADHD patients, the drug have the opposite effect.  It is akin to the various baseball players who took steroids to become “home-run kings”.  And, just like the steroids created problems with the athletes, taking the ADHD drugs can be addictive and/or create physiological problems.

Other students desire the ADHD diagnosis because some colleges afford those with ADHD diagnoses the ability to have extended time to take tests, and are not seeking the drug prescriptions.

Dr. Marshall recommended that (Dr. Green’s) Word Memory test or the TOVA (tests of variables of attention) be administered to determine charlatans.   The Word Memory Test distinguishes between the lack of effort and a failure due to cognitive impairment;; it takes about 5 minutes.  The TOVA takes about 22 minutes (works for children and adults) and measures attention and not behaviors, by measuring responses to visual and/or auditory stimuli.

While I am talking about college towns and “children”, i want to include my thoughts and wishes for those people dramatically affected by the tornadoes yesterday and the last week.  Having lived through (ok, 50 feet away) from a tornado or two, I understand the abject horror seeing this awesome funnel and knowing it cares not which way it goes.  I grew up in the North, always wondering why tornadoes chose mobile homes.  The last few years have very different patterns.  You can ridicule climate change if you want (after all, you are never taught proper science and scientists don’t vote as a bloc), but there are ramifications….

Since I wrote this post on 28 April, an interesting article about an ADD adult- Shane Victorino, the center fielder of my beloved Phillies, who suffers from ADD. You might want to read a short post about how he has grown with ADD.  (It was hereL http://www.philly.com/philly/sports/20110505_Victorino_s_positive_spirit_has_helped_him_deal_with_ADD.html )   So, the Philly papers removed this link from 2011, this is the closest you can find:

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