A recent study shows ADHD medications might be helpful in cutting traffic accident death rates.
For the study, the researchers studied 17,000 ADHD patients for four years. They found that medications such as Adderall could prevent up to half of traffic accidents involving men with the medical condition.
According to the researchers, ADHD people are 45 percent more likely to be involved in a serious car or motorcycle accident compared to those without the condition.
"Even though many people with ADHD are doing well, our results indicate that the disorder may have very serious consequences," Henrik Larsson, associate professor at the Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, said in a news release. "Our study also demonstrates in several different ways that the risk of transport accidents in adult men with ADHD decreases markedly if their condition is treated with medication."
The researchers studied the ADHD patients before and during the medications. They found that the risk of traffic accidents was 58 percent lower during periods with ADHD medication compared to periods without the treatment.
The medications may also be helpful in reducing traffic accidents by easing ADHD symptoms like impulsiveness and distractibility.
"Despite having shown that medication for ADHD very likely reduces men's risk of transport accidents, we could not establish a similar reduction in women's accident risk," Larsson added. "We need further data to be able to comment about the effect on women with statistical certainty. It is also important to point out that most pharmaceutical treatments carry a risk of side effects. The risks must be weighed against the benefits for every individual prescription, taking into account the individual patient's situation."
The findings are published in the journal JAMA Psychiatry.
