A new study shows significant improvement in critical components of reading, including decoding and vocabulary, among children treated with atomoxetine compared to placebo. Atomoxetine treatment was also associated with significant reductions in symptoms of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in children with both dyslexia and ADHD or ADHD alone, as reported in the study published in Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychopharmacology, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers (http://www.liebertpub.com/).
Researchers Sally Shaywitz, MD and Bennett Shaywitz, MD, Yale University (New Haven, CT), Linda Wietecha, Lilly USA (Indianapolis, IN), Sharon Wigal, PhD, AVIDA (Newport Beach, CA), Keith McBurnett, PhD, University of California, San Francisco, David Williams, inVentiv Health Clinical, and William Kronenberger, PhD, Indiana University School of Medicine (Indianapolis, IN), and Stephen Hooper, PhD, University of North Carolina, School of Medicine (Chapel Hill) evaluated reading ability and ADHD symptoms in children aged 10-16 years who had dyslexia, dyslexia and ADHD, or only ADHD and received either atomoxetine or placebo for 16 weeks. The authors report their results in the article "Atomoxetine Treatment on Reading and Phonological Skills in Children with Dyslexia or Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Comorbid Dyslexia in a Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Trial (http://online.liebertpub.com/doi/full/10.1089/cap.2015.0189)."
"Treatments for dyslexia are essential for the millions of children who suffer from this disorder. This unique study offers a potential promising psychopharmacological intervention for the treatment of dyslexia," says Harold S. Koplewicz, MD, Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychopharmacology and President of the Child Mind Institute in New York.
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