Ritalin® May Help You Keep Your Balance

We worry these days about kids taking their parents (or grandparents) medications for ‘recreational purposes’. Now there’s possibly a good reason why should raid your child’s pill bottle. A short article in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society reports a study of methylphenidate (Ritalin®) – normally taken by youngsters to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) - in apparently healthy 70-year-olds. The plan was to see if the drug could reduce the risk of falls in the elderly.

There were 26 subjects, who were living in the community and complained of memory problems, but were not demented. The effects of a single dose of 20 mg methylphenidate on gait and mental functioning were compared with those of a placebo. Evaluations were done before and 2 hours after taking one of the medications (active or placebo), and repeated 1 to 2 weeks later with the subject taking the other medication. The Timed Up and Go test (TUG), gait variability and a quantitative neuropsychology battery of tests were done.

In the TUG test a person gets up from a chair, walks 3 meters at a normal pace, turns round and walks back, and sits down again. The times for the TUG test were less, there was less variability in stride, and mental tests of ‘executive function’ were improved with methylphenidate, but not with the placebo. Memory tests were unaffected by either treatment.

These findings show that taking methylphenidate (once) improved tests that normally indicate a risk of falling. Of course, more tests are needed to see if the benefits are maintained with prolonged treatment, and what side effects in older folk may occur. However, the results here indicate that a drug intended to enhance attention may help older adults reduce their fall risk. We’ll keep alert for further results.

Comments

[dawn]

was diagnosed with add one year ago, at age 44, and am now taking ritalin (30 mg daily). i have noticed that sometimes in the morning my balance is not very good, and then after i take my ritalin, i recover, and my balance is good again.

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