N521 Discussion 7 ADHD Assignment

J. T., who is a Native American male, age 8, is always interrupting his teacher, jumping out of his seat in class, fidgeting relentlessly, and butting into other children’s games. At home, he runs around recklessly and is uncontrollable. His mother comes to the CNP in the Pediatric Clinic and wonders why he will not listen. She is concerned because his grades at school are dropping. After medical evaluation, you find nothing wrong with J. T. physically, and he is taking no other medications. Through questioning, you determine that he has trouble concentrating on his homework, often forgets he has homework, loses pieces of games frequently, and hates to sit and read. His mother is unsure of the time frame over which these behaviors developed, but she thinks it has been since her second child was born 5 years ago. N521 Discussion 7 ADHD Assignment

While in your office, J. T. did not seem to be hyperactive or inattentive, but you notice he is easily distracted by people passing in the hallway because the door is slightly ajar.

Diagnosis: Attention-Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD)

In this discussion forum:

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Discuss specific goals for pharmacotherapy for treating J. T.’s ADHD.

Discuss the first-line drug therapy for J. T., and why.

Discuss monitoring parameters you would institute for J. T.’s parents and his teachers.

Discuss specific patient education you would provide to J. T.’s parents based on the prescribed therapy

Pharmacotherapeutic Treatment of Juvenile Attention-Deficit/ Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in an 8 Year-Old

The neurodevelopmental disorder that is attention-deficit/ hyperactivity disorder or ADHD is known to begin in childhood but also affects adolescents and adults. The characteristic features of the condition are inattention and/ or hyperactivity that are accompanied by learning difficulties. The child cannot concentrate in school and finds academic work tedious and boring. These children are otherwise physically normal (Wender & Tomb, 2017). This paper is about the case study of 8 year-old Native American male called J.T. with disruptive hyperactivity and inattention both at school and at home.N521 Discussion 7 ADHD Assignment

The specific goals for pharmacotherapy for treating J.T.’s ADHD are to assist him follow rules and regulations, to help him pay attention in class and at home, and to make him be able to form long-lasting interpersonal relationships with his peers as well as parents and teachers (Stahl, 2017). Being 8 years old, the first-line drug therapy for J.T. would be methylphenidate (Focalin). The first reason for this is that it is FDA-approved for treating ADHD in children between the ages of 6 and 17 years. The other reason is that available scholarly scientific evidence suggests that it is methylphenidate that is most efficacious in reducing the symptoms of inattention and hyperactivity in children with ADHD (Lacobucci, 2018; Stahl, 2017). The monitoring parameters I would institute for J.T.’s parents and teachers are Connor’s Teacher Rating Scale and Connor’s Parent Rating Scale. These would capture behavioral parameters that would indicate whether J.T. will be improving on treatment or not. The specific patient education that would be given to J.T.’s parents based on the prescribed treatment would be about strict medication compliance and prompt reporting of any side effects.

References

Lacobucci, G. (2018). ADHD: Methylphenidate should be first line drug treatment in children, review confirms. BMJ, k3430. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.k3430 

Stahl, S.M. (2017). Stahl’s essential psychopharmacology: Prescriber’s guide, 6th ed. Cambridge University Press.

Wender, P.H. & Tomb, D.A. (2017). ADHD: A guide to understanding symptoms, causes, diagnosis, treatment, and changes over time in children, adolescents, and adults, 5^th ed. Oxford University Press. N521 Discussion 7 ADHD Assignment