Note to users. If you're seeing this message, it means that your browser cannot find this page's style/presentation instructions -- or possibly that you are using a browser that does not support current Web standards. Find out more about why this message is appearing, and what you can do to make your experience of our site the best it can be.

Science 17 November 2000:
Vol. 290. no. 5495, pp. 1280 - 1282
DOI: 10.1126/science.290.5495.1280
Prev | Table of Contents | Next

News Focus

CLINICAL TRIALS:
Planned Ritalin Trial for Tots Heads Into Uncharted Waters

Eliot Marshall

U.S. scientists are gearing up for a major clinical trial intended to measure the effects of a popular but controversial drug used to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, methylphenidate (Ritalin), on a previously untested population--children aged 3 to 6. But in doing so, they are running up against ethical concerns about using young subjects in clinical trials. The scientists involved in the study admit that they are concerned about the drug's effect on the children's still-developing personalities and brains, as well as their inability to give informed consent. But they believe that such trials are the only way to answer concerns about rising use of the drug among this population.

Read the Full Text

To Advertise     Find Products

Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)