Trends in stimulant dispensing by age, sex, state of residence, and prescriber specialty — United States, 2014–2019
Open accessAbstract
Background Stimulant medications are commonly prescribed for the treatment of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder; however, they also have high potential for diversion and misuse. We estimated national stimulant dispensing trends from 2014 to 2019 and differences in dispensing by age, sex, state, prescriber specialty, payor type, patient copay, and stimulant type.Methods We calculated rates of stimulant dispensing using IQVIA National Prescription Audit (NPA) New to Brand, NPA Regional, and NPA Extended Insights data, which provide dispensing estimates from approximately 49,900 pharmacies representing 92 % of prescriptions dispensed in the United States. Average annual percent change (AAPC) from 2014 to 2019 was analyzed using Joinpoint regression.Results From 2014 to 2019, the national annual rate of stimulant dispensing increased significantly from 5.6 to 6.1 prescriptions per 100 persons. Rates differed by prescription stimulant type, with increases occurring among both amphetamine-type stimulants and long-acting stimulants. Rates among females (AAPC = 3.6 %; P = 0.001) and adults aged 20-39 years (AAPC=6.7 %; P = 0.002), 40-59 years (AAPC=9.7 %; P < 0.001), and ≥60 years (AAPC = 6.9 %; P = 0.001) increased significantly during the study period. Stimulant dispensing rates varied substantially across states, ranging from 1.0 per 100 in Hawaii to 13.6 per 100 in Alabama.Conclusions National stimulant dispensing rates increased from 2014 to 2019, driven by notable increases among females and adults aged ≥20 years. These trends should be considered when prescribing stimulants given growing concerns over prescription stimulant diversion, misuse, and related health harms.
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Self-check
Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.
The self-check needs the paper’s full text.
Cites
Kessler, R. C., Adler, L., Barkley, R., Biederman, J., Conners, C. K., Demler, O., Faraone, S. V., Greenhill, L. L., Howes, M. J., Secnik, K., et al. (2006) · American Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.1176/ajp.2006.163.4.716 · Cited by 3,886 · cited 1× · see citing works
“4 % of adults (Kessler et al., 2006) have ever been diagnosed with ADHD.”
BackgroundVisser, S. N., Danielson, M. L., Bitsko, R. H., Holbrook, J. R., Kogan, M. D., Ghandour, R. M., Perou, R., & Blumberg, S. J. (2014) · Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry · doi:10.1016/j.jaac.2013.09.001 · Cited by 1,263 · see citing works
Danielson, M. L., Bitsko, R. H., Ghandour, R. M., Holbrook, J. R., Kogan, M. D., & Blumberg, S. J. (2018) · Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology · doi:10.1080/15374416.2017.1417860 · Cited by 1,181 · see citing works
Teter, C. J., McCabe, S. E., LaGrange, K., Cranford, J. A., & Boyd, C. J. (2006) · Pharmacotherapy The Journal of Human Pharmacology and Drug Therapy · doi:10.1592/phco.26.10.1501 · Cited by 540 · cited 1× · see citing works
“, 2009) and have been misused more often by college students in recent years (Teter et al., 2006).”
BackgroundPotential Adverse Effects of Amphetamine Treatment on Brain and Behavior: A Review
Arcos-Burgos, M., Jain, M., Acosta, M. T., Shively, S., Stanescu, H., Wallis, D., Domené, S., Velez, J. I., Karkera, J., Balog, J. Z., et al. (2008) · Molecular Psychiatry · doi:10.1038/mp.2008.90 · Cited by 423 · see citing works
Misuse of Stimulant Medication Among College Students: A Comprehensive Review and Meta-analysis
Benson, K., Flory, K., Humphreys, K. L., & Lee, S. S. (2015) · Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review · doi:10.1007/s10567-014-0177-z · Cited by 328 · cited 1× · see citing works
“medication misuse among college students specifically (17 %) (Benson et al., 2015).”
BackgroundMcCabe, S. E., West, B. T., Teter, C. J., & Boyd, C. J. (2014) · Addictive Behaviors · doi:10.1016/j.addbeh.2014.03.008 · Cited by 268 · cited 1× · see citing works
“Some population groups, particularly college students, have experienced recent increases in past-year nonmedical prescription stimulant use that parallel increased trends in medical use (McCabe et al., 2014).”
BackgroundCompton, W. M., Han, B., Blanco, C., Johnson, K., & Jones, C. M. (2018) · American Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.1176/appi.ajp.2018.17091048 · Cited by 263 · cited 2× · see citing works
“Prescription stimulants are also misused due to their central nervous system stimulant and euphoric effects (Compton et al., 2018), and their perceived cognitive enhancing effects.”
BackgroundSelf-citationStimulant Medication Use in Children: A 12-Year Perspective
Zuvekas, S. H., & Vitiello, B. (2011) · American Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.1176/appi.ajp.2011.11030387 · Cited by 251 · cited 1× · see citing works
“5 %) children (Zuvekas and Vitiello, 2012) use stimulants annually.”
Patterns and Characteristics of Methamphetamine Use Among Adults — United States, 2015–2018
Jones, C. M., Compton, W. M., & Mustaquim, D. (2020) · MMWR Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report · doi:10.15585/mmwr.mm6912a1 · Cited by 246 · see citing works
Self-citationFaraone, S. V., Rostain, A. L., Montano, C. B., Mason, O., Antshel, K. M., & Newcorn, J. H. (2020) · Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry · doi:10.1016/j.jaac.2019.06.012 · Cited by 225 · cited 4× · see citing works
“associated with prescription stimulant diversion is needed (Arria and DuPont, 2018; Clemow and Walker, 2014; Faraone et al., 2019).”
BackgroundMethodInfluentialThe Potential for Misuse and Abuse of Medications in ADHD: A Review
Clemow, D. B., & Walker, D. J. (2014) · Postgraduate Medicine · doi:10.3810/pgm.2014.09.2801 · Cited by 198 · cited 4× · see citing works
“associated with prescription stimulant diversion is needed (Arria and DuPont, 2018; Clemow and Walker, 2014; Faraone et al., 2019).”
BackgroundMethodInfluentialTrends in use of prescription stimulants in the United States and Territories, 2006 to 2016
Piper, B. J., Ogden, C. L., Simoyan, O. M., Chung, D. Y., Caggiano, J. F., Nichols, S. D., & McCall, K. L. (2018) · PLOS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0206100 · Cited by 170 · cited 3× · see citing works
“Recent analyses suggest that age, sex, and U.S. state of residence play a role in stimulant prescribing patterns (Burcu et al., 2016; Piper et al., 2018; Safer, 2016; Tseregounis et al., 2019), with stimulant sales to adults surpassing those of children, and adult women receiving more prescription…”
BackgroundRenoux, C., Shin, J., Dell'Aniello, S., Fergusson, E., & Suissa, S. (2016) · British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology · doi:10.1111/bcp.13000 · Cited by 132 · see citing works
Testing the equality of two dependent kappa statistics
Donner, A. P., Shoukri, M. M., Klar, N. S., & Bartfay, E. (2000) · Statistics in Medicine · doi:10.1002/(sici)1097-0258(20000215)19:3 · Cited by 90 · see citing works
Recent Trends in Stimulant Usage
Safer, D. J. (2015) · Journal of Attention Disorders · doi:10.1177/1087054715605915 · Cited by 78 · cited 5× · see citing works
“…analyses suggest that age, sex, and U.S. state of residence play a role in stimulant prescribing patterns (Burcu et al., 2016; Piper et al., 2018; Safer, 2016; Tseregounis et al., 2019), with stimulant sales to adults surpassing those of children, and adult women receiving more prescription…”
BackgroundInfluentialVitola, E. S., Bau, C. H. D., Salum, G. A., Horta, B. L., Quevedo, L., Barros, F. C., Pinheiro, R. T., Kieling, C., Rohde, L. A., & Grevet, E. H. (2016) · Psychological Medicine · doi:10.1017/s0033291716002853 · Cited by 76 · cited 2× · see citing works
“1 %) when applying the DSM-5 criteria (Vitola et al., 2017).”
MethodAdolescents’ prescription stimulant use and adult functional outcomes: a national prospective study
McCabe, S. E., Veliz, P., Wilens, T. E., & Schulenberg, J. E. (2017) · Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry · doi:10.1016/j.jaac.2016.12.008 · Cited by 76 · cited 1× · see citing works
“A nationally-representative longitudinal study that followed individuals to age 35 found that adults who reported stimulant misuse in adolescence had lower educational attainment and more symptoms of substance use disorder than those who never used prescription stimulants and those who used prescription stimulants med…”
BackgroundCurtin, K. P., Fleckenstein, A. E., Keeshin, B. R., Yurgelun-Todd, D. A., Renshaw, P. F., Smith, K. R., & Hanson, G. R. (2018) · Neuropsychopharmacology · doi:10.1038/s41386-018-0207-5 · Cited by 65 · cited 1× · see citing works
“An increased risk of developing diseases of the basal ganglia and cerebellum has also been observed in adult ADHD patients treated with prescription stimulants (Curtin et al., 2018).”
BackgroundAnderson, K. N., Ailes, E. C., Danielson, M. L., Lind, J. N., Farr, S. L., Broussard, C. S., & Tinker, S. C. (2018) · MMWR Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report · doi:10.15585/mmwr.mm6702a3 · Cited by 54 · cited 1× · see citing works
“Additionally, consistent with increasing trends in our study among women aged 20–39 and 40–59 years, a recent report found that ADHD stimulant prescriptions filled increased 344 % from 2003 to 2015 among reproductive-aged women (15–44 years) who were privately insured (Anderson et al., 2018).”
ResultLucke, J. C., Jensen, C., Dunn, M., Chan, G., Forlini, C., Kaye, S. S., Partridge, B., Farrell, M., Racine, É., & Hall, W. (2018) · BMC Public Health · doi:10.1186/s12889-018-6212-0 · Cited by 53 · see citing works
Trends in Stimulant Medication Use in Commercially Insured Youths and Adults, 2010-2014
Burcu, M., ZITO, J. M., Metcalfe, L. N., Underwood, H. R., & Safer, D. J. (2016) · JAMA Psychiatry · doi:10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2016.1182 · Cited by 49 · see citing works
Patterns and profiles of methylphenidate use both in children and adults
Pauly, V., Frauger, É., Lepelley, M., Mallaret, M., Boucherie, Q., & Micallef, J. (2018) · British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology · doi:10.1111/bcp.13544 · Cited by 32 · cited 1× · see citing works
“Data from France indicates that prescription stimulant dispensing occurs more frequently among adults aged 25–49 years compared to other age groups and that this population may be more likely to engage in misuse (Pauly et al., 2018).”
BackgroundHan, B., Jones, C. M., Blanco, C., & Compton, W. M. (2017) · The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry · doi:10.4088/jcp.17m11760 · Cited by 29 · cited 4× · see citing works
“0 % of those friends and relatives obtained their prescriptions from one doctor (Han et al., 2017), enhanced patient education on the risks Board et al.”
BackgroundMethodInfluentialSelf-citationADHD medication overdose and misuse: the NSW Poisons Information Centre experience, 2004–2014
Cairns, R., Daniels, B., Wood, D. A., & Brett, J. (2016) · Medical Journal of Australia · doi:10.5694/mja15.00791 · Cited by 27 · see citing works
Seasonality and the changing adult/child prescription ratios in ADHD therapy.
Cascade, E. F., Kalali, A. H., Weisler, R. H., & Lenderts, S. (2008) · Europe PMC (PubMed Central) · Cited by 21 · see citing works
Diversion of prescription stimulant drugs among 10–18-year-olds
Lasopa, S. O., Striley, C. W., & Cottler, L. B. (2015) · Current Opinion in Psychiatry · doi:10.1097/yco.0000000000000172 · Cited by 21 · cited 2× · see citing works
“In addition, approximately half (52 %) of all 10–18 year-olds have engaged in prescription stimulant diversion in their lifetime, either by obtaining prescription stimulants from others or giving their prescription stimulants to someone else (Lasopa et al., 2015).”
BackgroundDiversion of ADHD Stimulants and Victimization Among Adolescents
Epstein-Ngo, Q. M., McCabe, S. E., Veliz, P. T., Stoddard, S. A., Austic, E. A., & Boyd, C. J. (2015) · Journal of Pediatric Psychology · doi:10.1093/jpepsy/jsv105 · Cited by 21 · cited 1× · see citing works
“Furthermore, adolescents with ADHD who diverted their prescription stimulants have reported higher odds of experiencing peer victimization, including actual or threats of physical harm as well as relational harm through manipulating interpersonal relationships (Epstein-Ngo et al., 2016).”
BackgroundControlled Substance Schedules
Kenny, B. J., & Zito, P. M. (2019) · StatPearls · Cited by 21 · see citing works
Aldridge, A., Kroutil, L. A., Cowell, A. J., Reeves, D. B., & Brunt, D. L. V. (2011) · PharmacoEconomics · doi:10.2165/11584590-000000000-00000 · Cited by 18 · cited 2× · see citing works
“A systematic review found that stimulant diversion rates vary across populations, but can be as high as 80.0 % (Faraone et al., 2019), with men more than twice as likely as women to divert prescription stimulants (Aldridge et al., 2011).”
BackgroundInfluentialPrescription Stimulant Use and Misuse: Implications for Responsible Prescribing Practices
Arria, A. M., & DuPont, R. L. (2018) · American Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.1176/appi.ajp.2018.18050596 · Cited by 13 · cited 2× · see citing works
“associated with prescription stimulant diversion is needed (Arria and DuPont, 2018; Clemow and Walker, 2014; Faraone et al., 2019).”
BackgroundMethodAge- and Sex-Specific Increases in Stimulant Prescribing Rates—California, 2008-2017
Tseregounis, I. E., STEWART, S. L., Crawford, A., Marshall, B. D. L., Cerdá, M., Shev, A. B., & Henry, S. G. (2019) · Journal of Attention Disorders · doi:10.1177/1087054719883008 · Cited by 10 · cited 5× · see citing works
“Previous analyses have been limited to specific populations (Burcu et al., 2016; Tseregounis et al., 2019) or do not include the most recent available data on prescription stimulant dispensing trends (Burcu et al., 2016; Safer, 2016), limiting the development of informed policies, programs, and…”
BackgroundResultInfluentialGhosh, M., Holman, C. D. J., & Preen, D. B. (2015) · BMC Pharmacology and Toxicology · doi:10.1186/s40360-015-0035-8 · Cited by 5 · cited 1× · see citing works
“one-third to two-thirds less likely to have prescription stimulants than their non-Aboriginal counterparts (Ghosh et al., 2015).”
Background
Flagged first, then by citations
1 of the 34 references couldn’t be matched to a known paper.
Research works printed but not linked: 1
- Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 2019 Key substance use and mental health indicators in the United States: results from the 2018 National Survey on Drug Use and Health. Rockville, MD https://www.samhsa.gov/data/sites/default/files/cbhsq-reports/NSDUHNationalFindingsReport2018/NSDUHNationalFindingsReport2018.pdf. (Accessed April 4, 2020). 39437027
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Danielson, M. L., Claussen, A. H., Bitsko, R. H., Katz, S. M., Newsome, K., Blumberg, S. J., Kogan, M. D., & Ghandour, R. (2024) · Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology · doi:10.1080/15374416.2024.2335625 · Cited by 347 · see citing works
“…et al., 2018); prevalence estimates of ADHD medication use have generally increased over time (Burcu et al., 2016; Hales et al., 2018; Hoagwood et al., 2016; Olfson et al., 2015; Safer, 2016; Toce et al., 2022; Visser et al., 2014), though decreases have also been reported (Board et al., 2020).”
BackgroundDanielson, M. L., Bohm, M. K., Newsome, K., Claussen, A. H., Kaminski, J. W., Grosse, S. D., Siwakoti, L., Arifkhanova, A., Bitsko, R. H., & Robinson, L. R. (2023) · MMWR Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report · doi:10.15585/mmwr.mm7213a1 · Cited by 101 · see citing works
Danielson, M. L., Holbrook, J. R., Bitsko, R. H., Newsome, K., Charania, S., McCord, R. F., Kogan, M. D., & Blumberg, S. J. (2022) · Journal of Attention Disorders · doi:10.1177/10870547221099961 · Cited by 76 · see citing works
“Consistent with previous examinations of state-level estimates for ADHD diagnosis and treatment (Blue Cross Blue Shield, 2019; Board et al., 2020; Bozinovic et al., 2021; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2010; McDonald & Jalbert, 2013; Piper et al., 2018; Visser et al., 2014, 2015, 2016;…”
BackgroundMethodResultInfluentialTrends in Incident Prescriptions for Behavioral Health Medications in the US, 2018-2022
Chai, G. P., Xu, J., Goyal, S., Woods, C. M., Ho, A., Song, J., & Pan, G. J. D. (2024) · JAMA Psychiatry · doi:10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2023.5045 · Cited by 60 · see citing works
Brumbaugh, S., Tuan, W., Scott, A. R., Latronica, J. R., & Bone, C. (2022) · EClinicalMedicine · doi:10.1016/j.eclinm.2022.101524 · Cited by 35 · see citing works
Bruno, C., Havard, A., Gillies, M. B., Coghill, D., Brett, J., Guastella, A. J., Pearson, S., & Zoëga, H. (2022) · Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.1177/00048674221114782 · Cited by 33 · see citing works
“Since 2015, ADHD medicine use in some countries has appeared to plateau among children (Board et al., 2020; Grimmsmann and Himmel, 2021).”
BackgroundGender differences in the prevalence of stimulant misuse in the United States: 2015–2019
McHugh, R. K., Korte, F. M., Bichon, J. A., & Weiss, R. D. (2023) · American Journal on Addictions · doi:10.1111/ajad.13501 · Cited by 28 · see citing works
Recent trends in prescription drug misuse in the United States by age, race/ethnicity, and sex
Schepis, T. S., McCabe, S. E., & Ford, J. A. (2022) · American Journal on Addictions · doi:10.1111/ajad.13289 · Cited by 26 · see citing works
“Rates of prescription stimulant prescribing rose from 2014 to 2019 in adults 20 years and older, with greater increases in females.(12) Similarly, benzodiazepine prescribing rates increased from 2003 to 2015 in the United States, with significant increases across all age groups, all racial/ethnic groups, and both sexe…”
BackgroundExtended-Release Viloxazine Compared with Atomoxetine for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
Price, M. Z., & Price, R. L. (2023) · CNS Drugs · doi:10.1007/s40263-023-01023-6 · Cited by 22 · see citing works
“Pediatric and adult ADHD diagnoses have been rising over the past decade [10] alongside increasing numbers of prescriptions for psychostimulant medications [11].”
BackgroundMcCabe, S. E., Schulenberg, J. E., Wilens, T. E., Schepis, T. S., McCabe, V. V., & Veliz, P. T. (2023) · JAMA Network Open · doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2023.22650 · Cited by 22 · see citing works
McCabe, S. E., Figueroa, O., McCabe, V. V., Schepis, T. S., Schulenberg, J. E., Veliz, P. T., Werner, K. S., & Wilens, T. E. (2024) · Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry · doi:10.1111/jcpp.13807 · Cited by 22 · see citing works
Hartz, I., Madsstuen, N. H., Andersen, P. N., Handal, M., & Odsbu, I. (2024) · BMC Psychiatry · doi:10.1186/s12888-024-06199-9 · Cited by 19 · see citing works
“However, several studies investigating post-2010 patterns indicate that the level of ADHD medication use in children appeared to be stabilizing or even decreasing in some countries, with male-to-female-ratios converging and medication use increasing among older adolescents and adults [6, 7, 13–18].”
BackgroundStimulant medications affect arousal and reward, not attention networks
Kay, B. P., Wheelock, M. D., Siegel, J. S., Raut, R. V., Chauvin, R. J., Metoki, A., Rajesh, A., Eck, A., Pollaro, J., Wang, A., et al. (2025) · Cell · doi:10.1016/j.cell.2025.11.039 · Cited by 19 · see citing works
“Stimulants are one of the oldest, most potent, and most broadly used prescription psychoactive drugs, with 14 million users 1,4,5 and over $2.2 billion annual sales in the United States, 152 but their effects on the brain remain incompletely understood with divergent prior findings.”
InfluentialOutcomes and Predictors of Stimulant Misuse in College Students with and Without ADHD
Francis, A. R., Weyandt, L. L., Anastopoulos, A. D., DuPaul, G. J., & Shepard, E. (2021) · Journal of Attention Disorders · doi:10.1177/10870547211027650 · Cited by 15 · see citing works
Danielson, M. L., Claussen, A. H., Arifkhanova, A., Gonzalez, M. G., & Surman, C. B. H. (2024) · Journal of Attention Disorders · doi:10.1177/10870547241238899 · Cited by 14 · see citing works
“This result correlates with findings from an analysis of prescription dispensing data that primary care physicians prescribed more than one out of six stimulant prescriptions in 2019 (Board et al., 2020).”
BackgroundResultArkell, T. R., Bradshaw, K., Downey, L. A., & Hayley, A. C. (2022) · Addiction Biology · doi:10.1111/adb.13128 · Cited by 12 · see citing works
Babicki, M. (2022) · International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health · doi:10.3390/ijerph192214879 · Cited by 12 · see citing works
Dum, R., Ghahramani, A., Baweja, R. K., & Bellon, A. (2022) · Current Developmental Disorders Reports · doi:10.1007/s40474-022-00253-5 · Cited by 10 · see citing works
Ali, M. M., McClellan, C. B., Mutter, R. L., & Rees, D. I. (2022) · Health Economics · doi:10.1002/hec.4620 · Cited by 11 · see citing works
Kaminski, A., Xie, H., Hawkins, B., & Vaidya, C. J. (2024) · Translational Psychiatry · doi:10.1038/s41398-024-03165-7 · Cited by 10 · see citing works
“While stimulants are the fi rst-line treatment for ADHD, used by an estimated 3.5% of children in the US [3, 4], their long-term effects on the brain are not well understood.”
InfluentialMethylphenidate use and misuse among medical residents in Israel: a cross-sectional study
Zahavi, E., Lev-Shalem, L., Yehoshua, I., & Adler, L. (2023) · Human Resources for Health · doi:10.1186/s12960-023-00792-x · Cited by 11 · see citing works
Summit, A. G., Moseley, M. C., Chaku, N., Elam, K. K., Jacobs, W., Lederer, A. M., Vaughan, E. L., & Quinn, P. D. (2024) · Addiction · doi:10.1111/add.16716 · Cited by 8 · see citing works
Yager, J., Ritvo, A. D., & MacPhee, E. R. (2022) · Journal of Nervous & Mental Disease · doi:10.1097/nmd.0000000000001548 · Cited by 7 · see citing works
Pickens, C. M. G., Jones, C. M., Guy, G. P., Dailey-Govoni, T., & Green, J. L. (2023) · Drug and Alcohol Dependence Reports · doi:10.1016/j.dadr.2023.100153 · Cited by 7 · see citing works
Self-citationJia, M., Hu, F., & Yang, D. (2024) · European Journal of Pediatrics · doi:10.1007/s00431-024-05858-z · Cited by 7 · see citing works
“Antipsychotic medications [8] and stimulants [9, 10] are commonly used for these conditions.”
Prescribed stimulant medications: Trends in the last decade, pre and post COVID-19 response
Kim, M. L., Dalvi, N., Valerio, D. D., Strickler, G. K., & Young, L. D. (2023) · Exploratory Research in Clinical and Social Pharmacy · doi:10.1016/j.rcsop.2023.100314 · Cited by 7 · see citing works
McCabe, S. E., Schulenberg, J. E., Wilens, T. E., Schepis, T. S., Werner, K. S., McCabe, V. V., & Veliz, P. T. (2024) · Psychiatric Services · doi:10.1176/appi.ps.20230418 · Cited by 7 · see citing works
Pediatric ADHD Medication Errors Reported to United States Poison Centers, 2000 to 2021
DeCoster, M., Spiller, H. A., Badeti, J., Casavant, M. J., Rine, N. I., Michaels, N. L., Zhu, M., & Smith, G. A. (2023) · PEDIATRICS · doi:10.1542/peds.2023-061942 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
Stimulant Drugs and Stimulant Use Disorder
Song, W., Simona, A., Zhang, P., Bates, D. W., & Urman, R. D. (2023) · Anesthesiology Clinics · doi:10.1016/j.anclin.2023.09.003 · Cited by 7 · see citing works
Congruence of opioid prescriptions and dispensing using electronic records and claims data
Nataraj, N., Zhang, K., Strahan, A. E., & Guy, G. P. (2021) · Health Services Research · doi:10.1111/1475-6773.13673 · Cited by 5 · see citing works
Self-citationAitken, B., Downey, L. A., Rose, S., Arkell, T. R., Shiferaw, B. A., & Hayley, A. C. (2024) · Journal of Psychopharmacology · doi:10.1177/02698811241286715 · Cited by 5 · see citing works
“The increasing diagnosis of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has led to a rise in the prescription of ampheta-mine-derivative stimulants, such as Adderall and Vyvanse and methylphenidate (e.g. Ritalin and Concerta) as first-line therapy options (Board et al., 2020).”
BackgroundSex differences in the response to treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder
Müller, E. D., & Fender, A. C. (2025) · Naunyn-Schmiedeberg s Archives of Pharmacology · doi:10.1007/s00210-025-04716-5 · Cited by 4 · see citing works
“Global prevalence and drug prescription rates are consistently on the rise (Board et al. 2020; Bruno et al. 2023; Sørensen et al. 2023; Cho et al. 2024), particularly in young women.”
Veliz, P. T., Schulenberg, J. E., Zdroik, J., Werner, K. S., & McCabe, S. E. (2022) · American Journal of Epidemiology · doi:10.1093/aje/kwac132 · Cited by 4 · see citing works
Rockhill, K. M., Olson, R. A., Dart, R. C., Iwanicki, J. L., & Black, J. C. (2023) · Journal of Medical Internet Research · doi:10.2196/46742 · Cited by 5 · see citing works
“Among adults, the prevalence of diagnosed ADHD was estimated at 2.5% in 2009 [1], and the rates of dispensing, particularly among female individuals, were on the rise from 2014 to 2019 [4].”
InfluentialScharf, T., Huber, C. A., Näpflin, M., Zhang, Z., & Khatami, R. (2024) · JMIR Public Health and Surveillance · doi:10.2196/53957 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
“In the United States, amphetamine and methylphenidate increased from 5.6% to 6.1% in adults aged 20 years or older between 2014 and 2019 [4,5].”
InfluentialEvolution of methylphenidate prescriptions in the region of Occitanie, France, from 2013 to 2021
Velay, A., Alexis, J., Papinaud, L., Domerg, C., Purper‐Ouakil, D., Willig, T.-N., & Kerbage, H. (2025) · L Encéphale · doi:10.1016/j.encep.2025.01.005 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
Macmadu, A., Banks, A. J., Hallowell, B. D., Scagos, R. P., Hadland, S. E., Chambers, L. C., & Marshall, B. D. L. (2023) · Substance Use & Misuse · doi:10.1080/10826084.2023.2212037 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
“Over the past decade, prescription psychostimulant usage in the United States (US) has doubled (Piper et al., 2018), and rates of stimulant dispensing has increased sharply among women and adults over age 19 (Board et al., 2020).”
BackgroundInitiation Patterns and Transitions Among Adults Using Stimulant Drugs: Latent Transition Analysis
Black, J. C., Burkett, H. L., Rockhill, K. M., Olson, R. A., Dart, R. C., & Iwanicki, J. L. (2023) · Journal of Medical Internet Research · doi:10.2196/46747 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
Content Analysis of the Portrayal of Prescription Stimulants on TikTok
Johnson, B., Sun, T., Wu, L., Seal, S. M., Stjepanović, D., Chan, G., & Leung, J. (2025) · Journal of Attention Disorders · doi:10.1177/10870547251318834 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
“We also identified a predominance of young women among the content creators of prescription stimulant content on TikTok, despite ADHD being prescribed more often to males (Board et al., 2020; Sibley et al., 2023).”
Blood Pressure–Elevating and Antihypertensive Medication Prescription Trends
Kumar, A., Therrien, N. L., Ogwuegbu, J. I., Lee, J. S., Wall, H. K., Flack, J. M., & Jackson, S. L. (2025) · Hypertension · doi:10.1161/hypertensionaha.124.24316 · Cited by 4 · see citing works
Self-rated costs and benefits of conventional and alternative adult ADHD treatments
Haijen, E. C. H. M., Hurks, P. P. M., & Kuypers, K. P. C. (2024) · Scientific Reports · doi:10.1038/s41598-024-79025-7 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
“The high prevalence of conventional pharmacological treatments is consistent with the high prescription rates of stimulant ADHD medications in for example North American 33,34 and European countries 35 .”
Exploring Harm Reduction Advice for Prescription Stimulants on Reddit
Johnson, B., Thomas, N., & Salom, C. (2025) · Contemporary Drug Problems · doi:10.1177/00914509251395274 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
“This rate has been estimated to have increased (Board et al., 2020), especially during and following the COVID-19 pandemic (Board et al., 2020; Chai et al., 2024).”
Parent Perspectives on Barriers to Behavioral Health Services for Children With ADHD
Taylor, B. J., DiGirolamo, A. M., Snyder, A., Smith, C., Claussen, A. H., Hutchins, H. J., & Martinez, A. (2026) · Journal of Attention Disorders · doi:10.1177/10870547251412660 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
“Medication treatment among children with ADHD showed an average annual increase of 7% from 2007 to 2011 to 2012 (Visser et al., 2014) and has remained stable or declined in recent years (Board et al., 2020; Danielson et al., 2023, 2024; Davis et al., 2020).”
Trends in Parent-Reported ADHD Diagnosis and Treatment Among U.S. Children, 2016–2023
Katz, S. M., Claussen, A. H., Alberto, C. K., Bitsko, R. H., Newsome, K., Staley, B. S., Tian, L., Ghandour, R. M., & Blumberg, S. J. (2026) · Journal of Clinical Child & Adolescent Psychology · doi:10.1080/15374416.2026.2620385 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
“The prevalence of ADHD medication use among children and adolescents has generally increased over the past several decades (Hales et al., 2018; Hoagwood et al., 2016; Safer, 2016; Toce et al., 2022; Visser et al., 2014), though decreases have also been reported in recent years (Board et al., 2020).”
Antoniou, T., McCormack, D., Kitchen, S. A., PAJER, K. A., Gardner, W. P., Lunsky, Y., Penner, M., Tadrous, M., Mamdani, M., Juurlink, D. N., et al. (2023) · The Canadian Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.1177/07067437231166836 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
“…Finally, while nearly one-third of stimulant prescriptions in the United States were associated with out-of-pocket costs exceeding $25 in 2019, 14 representing an essential barrier to treatment access, this would not apply in Ontario between January 2018 and April 2019, during which…”
BackgroundMedical Cannabis Legalization: No Contribution to Rising Stimulant Rates in the USA
Alexander, G. D., Cavanah, L. R., Goldhirsh, J. L., Huey, L. Y., & Piper, B. J. (2023) · Pharmacopsychiatry · doi:10.1055/a-2152-7757 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
“There was an uptick of amphetamine-type and long-acting type stimulants distribution from 5.6 to 6.1 prescriptions per 100 persons from 2014 to 2019 [5].”
BackgroundInfluentialStigma Related to the Non-Medical Use and Diversion of Prescription Stimulant Drugs: Should We Care
Simon, K. E., Buttram, M. E., Samuel, K. D., Doyle, N. A., & Davis, R. E. (2024) · Substance Use & Misuse · doi:10.1080/10826084.2024.2330903 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
“…and amphetamine and dextroamphetamin (e.g., Adderall), are commonly used as treatment of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) by prolonging periods of focused on-task attention, decreasing hyperactivity and assisting with impulse control (Board et al., 2020; Torres-Acosta et al., 2020).”
BackgroundInfluentialMoore, T. J., Wirtz, P. W., Curran, J. N., & Alexander, G. C. (2023) · BMJ Open · doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2022-069668 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
Huynh, K. V., Glass, I. V., & Zanarini, M. C. (2024) · Journal of Personality Disorders · doi:10.1521/pedi.2024.38.5.493 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
Johnson, B., Seal, S., Wu, L., Glasgow, S., Connor, J. P., & Chan, G. (2025) · Journal of Affective Disorders · doi:10.1016/j.jad.2025.04.118 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
Motivations and Experiences of Prescription Stimulant Use: An Analysis of Reddit Discussions
Johnson, B., Thomas, N., & Salom, C. (2025) · Journal of Drug Issues · doi:10.1177/00220426251370613 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Deutsch, A., Haggarty, C. J., Petrie, G. N., Hill, M. N., Bershad, A. K., de Wit, H., & Mayo, L. M. (2025) · Psychopharmacology · doi:10.1007/s00213-025-06888-7 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
“As many as 16 million adults and 2.8 million children in the United States receive stimulant medications daily, usually for attention-deficit-hyperactive-disorder (Board et al. 2020).”
InfluentialSanders, M. R., Smith, K., Holland, M., Blythe, E., Doan, D., Higgins, H., Lovings, A. J., Taylor, A., McCormick, N. P., Davis, B. R., et al. (2025) · Exploratory Research in Clinical and Social Pharmacy · doi:10.1016/j.rcsop.2025.100695 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
McArdle, P., Trott, M., Warren, N., Silva, D. D., Smith, L., Ritchie, S., & Siskind, D. J. (2025) · Australasian Psychiatry · doi:10.1177/10398562251406048 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Trends and patterns of medical stimulant use by US adults
Olfson, M., McClellan, C. B., Zuvekas, S. H., & Blanco, C. (2026) · Molecular Psychiatry · doi:10.1038/s41380-026-03519-1 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
“The data are available at https://meps.ahrq.gov/data_stats/ download_data_ fi les.jsp.”
Trends in Stimulant and Sedative/Hypnotic Dispensing: An Exploratory Study
Liou, H., Gentry, M. T., Leung, J. G., Mara, K. C., Staab, J. P., & Rummans, T. A. (2023) · Journal of Attention Disorders · doi:10.1177/10870547231187167 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
“Stimulant prescribing has increased significantly over the past several years, especially among females and adults aged 20 years and older (Board et al., 2020; Brumbaugh et al., 2022; Moustafa et al., 2022; Paiva et al., 2023).”
InfluentialThe ADHD Conundrum- A Review of Non-pharmacological Approach to Management
Palakodeti, S., Sarangi, A., & Mehta, T. (2025) · Current Developmental Disorders Reports · doi:10.1007/s40474-025-00317-2 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Prescription stimulant brand name recognition among a national sample of 10‐ to 18‐year‐old youth
Cottler, L. B., Lasopa, S. O., Striley, C. W., Cicero, T. J., Fitzgerald, N. D., & Abdallah, A. B. (2021) · International Journal of Methods in Psychiatric Research · doi:10.1002/mpr.1884 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Ramdin, C., Bikkina, R., Nelson, L. S., & Mazer-Amirshahi, M. E. (2023) · The American Journal of Emergency Medicine · doi:10.1016/j.ajem.2023.01.042 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Prescription Stimulants: Use for Weight Control and Associations with Disordered Eating
Nutley, S. K. (2022) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-030-67928-6_92-1
Prescription Stimulants: Use for Weight Control and Associations with Disordered Eating
Nutley, S. K. (2022) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-030-92392-1_92
Scharf, T., Huber, C. A., Näpflin, M., Zhang, Z., & Khatami, R. (2023) · doi:10.2196/preprints.53957
Schizophrenia Spectrum Disorders and Psychosis
Kalin, N. H. (2024) · American Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.1176/appi.ajp.20240733 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Kumar, A., Therrien, N. L., Ogwuegbu, J. I., Lee, J. S., Wall, H. K., Flack, J. M., & Jackson, S. L. (2024) · medRxiv · doi:10.1101/2024.11.14.24317362
Predictors of Potentially Inappropriate Stimulant Prescribing Among Adults
Thakkar, P. V., Boutzoukas, A. E., Compton, S. N., Sivashankar, O., Zimmerman, K. O., Benjamin, D. K., & Brookhart, M. A. (2025) · Pharmacoepidemiology and Drug Safety · doi:10.1002/pds.70079
“Other studies have evaluated trends in filled stimulant prescriptions [1, 2, 4, 15], the prevalence of cardiovascular disease and substance addiction among privately insured patients taking stimulants [16], and off-label prescribing of several drug classes at psychiatrist visits [17].”
A Day in the Life of a Behavioral Health Consultant
Robinson, P. J., & Reiter, J. T. (2025) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-031-72150-2_12
Buttram, M. E., Robinson, S., Ellis, M. S., Stivers, Y., & Ahsan, M. M. (2025) · Drugs Education Prevention and Policy · doi:10.1080/09687637.2025.2511696
“The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the use of pharmaceutical stimulant medications to treat attention-deficit/ hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), including methylphenidate (e.g. Ritalin®; Concerta®), amphetamines (e.g. Adderall®), and their derivatives (e.g. Vyvanse®; Focalin®) (Board et al., 2020).”
InfluentialDiversion of medication among college students with ADHD: A brief report
Barnard-Brak, L. M. (2025) · Journal of American College Health · doi:10.1080/07448481.2025.2577649
Alfaro, R. M. J., Serrano, A. R. D., Sokolowski, D., Hughes, K. A., Rodd, F. H., & Anreiter, I. (2026) · Scientific Reports · doi:10.1038/s41598-026-53015-3
Zahavi, E., Lev-Shalem, L., Yehoshua, I., & Adler, L. (2023) · Figshare · doi:10.6084/m9.figshare.22606013
Beyond attention: methylphenidate reduces dishonesty in healthy adults
Kappes, A., Cohn, A., Maréchal, M. A., Nußberger, A.-M., Savulescu, J., Cowen, P. J., Browning, & Crockett, M. J. (2026) · Psychopharmacology · doi:10.1007/s00213-026-07059-y
Huskinson, S. L., & Kohtz, A. S. (2026) · Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience · doi:10.3389/fnbeh.2026.1778346
Rzeszutek, M., Konowałek, Ł., Martin, J., Butwicka, A., & Wolańczyk, T. (2026) · European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry · doi:10.1007/s00787-026-03104-5
“In the same period, based on our analyses, the corresponding rate in Poland was 0.24 to 0.33 prescriptions per 100 persons [ 14].”
InfluentialGuez, E., van der Waerden, J. E. B., Cohen, D., & Benarous, X. (2026) · BMC Public Health · doi:10.1186/s12889-026-28213-3
“Similar configurations have been described internationally [19, 57, 58], with territorial variation in ADHD medication use persisting over long periods despite changes in overall levels of use.”
A Descriptive Survey of Student RN Anesthetists' Use of Cognitive Enhancers
Hammon, L. T., Rojo, M. O., DeClerk, L. C., Jin, J., Cowan, P. A., & Johnson, T. (2026) · Journal of Nursing Education · doi:10.3928/01484834-20260612-01
Aronson, I. D., Quiles, R., Cramer, A., Fong, C., & Bennett, A. S. (2026) · JMIR Formative Research · doi:10.2196/99947
“…Opioid Effects, Including Oversedation and Withdrawal While Ritalin and Adderall are generally prescribed to treat ADHD and sometimes for weight loss or to treat narco-lepsy [14], participants consistently reported using prescription stimulants to manage the negative effects of unregulated opioids.”
Richards, M. E., Mahesh, B., Tarrazzi, D., & Charmelo-Silva, S. (2026) · Gerodontology · doi:10.1111/ger.70124
Rouzbahani, A. K., Ghorabi, S. T., Abbasi, F., & Fazeli, A. (2026) · Addiction and Health · doi:10.34172/ahj.1555
Stone, M., Smith, F., & Nechuta, S. (2026) · Birth · doi:10.1111/birt.70141
- Authors
- Board, A. R., Guy, G., Jones, C. M., & Hoots, B.
- Affiliations
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (US)
- Corresponding author
- Board, Amy R.
- Venue
- Drug and Alcohol Dependence
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2020-12
- Volume
- 217
- Pages
- 108297
- ISSN
- 0376-8716 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC7851748
- OpenAlex
- W3086772048
- Cited by
- 79
- References
- 34
- Citations by year
- 2026: 13 · 2025: 16 · 2024: 15 · 2023: 20 · 2022: 12 · 2021: 3
- FWCI
- 6.38
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Drug and Alcohol Dependence (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- National Institutes of Health (CC999999)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Opioid Use Disorder Treatment
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Epidemiology › Substance Abuse Treatment and Outcomes
- Keywords
- stimulant medication, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, amphetamine-type stimulants, long-acting stimulants, prescription drug diversion, prescription drug misuse, age differences, sex differences, state-level variation, prescriber specialty
- MeSH terms
- Adolescent, Adult, Age Factors, Aged, Amphetamine, Central Nervous System Stimulants, Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity, Child, Child, Preschool, Female, Humans, Infant, Infant, Newborn, Male, Middle Aged, Pharmacies, Physicians, Drug Prescriptions, Quality of Health Care, Residence Characteristics, Sex Factors, United States, Young Adult
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
