Avoid ADHD drugs, Canada tells heart patients
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Canada’s health ministry on Friday warned individuals with hypertension (high blood pressure), heart disease, clogged arteries (atherosclerosis) or hyperthyroidism not to take drugs used to manage attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
Health Canada said that in rare cases, patient with these conditions could suffer “rare heart-related side effects” from these drugs. In a statement, it warned people who are already taking these drugs not to stop before consulting their physician.
“All ADHD drugs stimulate the heart and blood vessels… The effects are usually mild or moderate, but in some patients this stimulation may—in rare cases—result in cardiac arrests, strokes or death,” said Health Canada.
Reviewers at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have been working for months to analyze reports of sudden deaths, heart attacks and strokes and psychiatric symptoms, such as hallucinations, in patients who took these drugs.
In March, a panel of U.S. medical advisors called for new information about heart risks to be added to labeling for ADHD medications but stopped short of recommending tougher measures.
The drugs mentioned by Health Canada include:
* Adderall XR, made by Britain’s Shire Pharmaceuticals Group Plc
* Concerta, made by Johnson & Johnson
* Ritalin and Ritalin SR, made by Novartis AG
* Dexedrine, made by GlaxoSmithKline Plc
* Strattera, made by Eli Lilly and Co.
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