ADHD Drugs Work, Just Not the Way Experts Believed

The stimulants Ritalin and Adderall have been used to treat attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) for decades, but research shows they do not act on the brain's attention circuitry as had long been assumed.

Instead, the medications primarily target the brain's reward and wakefulness centers, according to a new study published in the journal Cell. The research, which used brain imaging data from almost 5,800 children ages 8 to 11, also pointed toward the important role that lack of sleep plays in the disorder.

"When I first saw the results, I thought I had just made a mistake because none of the attention systems are changing here," said Benjamin Kay, one of the study's authors and a professor of neurology at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

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