ADHD in Children

[sfw918]

Hi,
My son just took his first dose of Concerta this morning. He is 8 years old. He had a good day at school, he was more focused. However, I have noticed since he came home, he moves his lower jaw around and his tongue uncontrollably. Is this a side effect normal? Will it get better? I talked to his doctor and she said to not give it to him tomorrow. I am very disturbed, because I really wanted this to work for him. Anyone esle have this experience?

[tulch001]

Hiya! I took Concerta for a number of years for ADD as well, but I had no side effects with the jaw and tongue. I'd say talk to his pediatrician and look at the Concerta website for those side effects.
-ST.

[MomofEmma]

Hello,

My daughter is ADHD and Autistic. She's been on Concerta for two years now. She has developed twitches, first she used to rub her eyes constantly then it was the bridge of her nose. After that it was scrunching her nose, making her look like she was making faces at you...Now she puffs up her cheeks and blows out the air in her mouth.
These twitches last anywhere from a few months to a year. Personally, the last one is easier to deal with; it's not as distracting.
Another side effect is weight loss. She was a heavy child before she went on it-about 67 pounds and was almost four feet tall (she was 6 years old). She lost 17 lbs in about 4 months. Since then it has been a struggle to keep her wieght up but a recent visit to the doc has her at 58 lbs!
Concerta has changed Emma's life for the good. She can look you in the eye and hug you. She can speak in sentences and has been developing her short term memory, which was severely lacking. Talk to your pediatrician - what I found is that this drug slowed Emma's brain down enough for her to be able to focus and learn behaviors as oppose to just attacking things in a fit of rage.

Best of luck

[Bookworm]

Concerta is a form of methylphenidate (generic name for Ritalin) in a formulation that is meant to last all day (10 - 12 hours). Has your son taken any form of methylphenidate before? did he experience any side effects?

If not, you may want to with methylphenidate/Ritalin. It is shorter-acting and lasts only 3.5 - 4 hours. Most of the medication will be out of your son's system a few hours after the dose wears off. It also comes in 5 mg tablets, so it is easier to adjust the dosage.

A side-effect of methylphenidate can be tics and it sounds like your son may be experiencing this side effect. It is possible that a lower dose of methylphenidate will eliminate the undesirable side effect you son is experiencing yet still provide the attention benefits you seek.

I would talk to your pediatrician about starting with a half dose of Ritalin/methylphenidate (by splitting the 5 mg tablet). Try it 2x a day (school nurse can dispense at lunch time) for a week and see how he does. If he seems to need more, you could increase the a.m. dose to a full tablet for a week -- in other words, gradually increase the dose until you see benefits but no side effects. After you figure out what dose of methylphenidate works for your son, you can switch over to the equivalent dose of Concerta.