 |
|||||
 |
Winter 2014 Is There a Role for Cell Phone Applications in the Self-Management of Asthma? Finding Patient-centered Resources on the Medicare Consumer Websites Parents Need Training in Inhaler Technique Is Social Media the Patient's Friend? RT Students Impact Patient Care During a Medical Mission to the British Virgin Islands Asthma and Allergies Linked to ADHD in Boys
|
 |
 |
 Asthma and Allergies Linked to ADHD in Boys
U.S. and European scientists publishing in the August 2013 issue of the Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (Volume 111, Issue 2, pp 82-83) have reported a link between asthma and allergies and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in males. The study was conducted among 884 boys with ADHD and 3,536 boys without the disorder. Of the children with ADHD, 34% had asthma and 35% had an allergic disorder. The increased risk for ADHD in boys with asthma was strongest in those who also had an allergy to milk. The study suggests medications used to treat these conditions may be associated with an increased ADHD risk, as well. However, the editor in chief of the journal publishing the study cautioned against reducing the use of asthma medications based on that one finding. “Further research is needed to understand why there appears to be an increased risk of developing ADHD in children with allergy and asthma,” Gailen Marshall, MD, was quoted as saying. “Medications for these conditions far outweigh the risks and can be life-saving in some conditions. Treatment should not be stopped unless advised by a board-certified allergist.” 
|
|
