The following provides information from government sources about considerations for use of prescription stimulant medications. It should not serve as medical guidance, but rather as a resource to introduce topics and terms related to the use of these medications.
Prescribers, pharmacists, patients, and family members should be encouraged to learn more about the risks associated with prescription stimulant medications, including misuse, as well as tools available to support safe and responsible use.
For information on substance use disorder, misuse, abuse, and diversion of prescription medications, please visit the National Institute on Drug Abuse. SAMHSA’s confidential and anonymous Behavioral Health Treatment Services Locator can be accessed here, and their free and confidential National Helpline can be reached through 1-800-662-HELP (4357) and 1-800-487-4889 (TTY).
The following information, from NIDA and other government organizations, includes ways to support the safe and responsible use of prescription stimulant medications.5 This is not an exhaustive list. Healthcare professionals and patients should review these resources in their entirety and patients should discuss any questions they may have with their healthcare professional.
Adlon is committed to providing balanced and accurate scientific and clinical information to help you make informed healthcare decisions.
1 National Institute on Drug Abuse. Drug Facts: Stimulant ADHD Medications. Methylphenidate and Amphetamines 2014. Accessed on February 2021. Retrieved from https://www.drugabuse.gov/sites/default/files/drugfacts_stimulantadhd_1.pdf.
2 The National Institute of Mental Health. Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD): The Basics. https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/attention-deficit-hyperactivity-disorder-adhd-the-basics/index.shtml.
3 United States Drug Enforcement Administration. Drug Scheduling. Accessed on February 2021. Retrieved from https://www.dea.gov/drug-scheduling.
4 National Institute on Drug Abuse. Drug Facts: Prescription Stimulants 2018. Accessed on February 2021. Retrieved from https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/drugfacts/prescription-stimulants.
5 National Institute on Drug Abuse. Drug Facts: Misuse of Prescription Drugs 2018. Accessed on February 2021. Retrieved from https://d14rmgtrwzf5a.cloudfront.net/sites/default/files/2609-misuse-of-prescription-drugs.pdf.
6 U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Remarks Delivered Before FDA’s Scientific Meeting on Opioids 2017. Accessed on February 2021. Retrieved from https://www.fda.gov/news-events/speeches-fda-officials/remarks-delivered-fdas-scientific-meeting-opioids-07102017.
7 National Institute on Drug Abuse. The Science of Drug Use and Addiction: The Basics 2018. Accessed on February 2021. Retrieved from https://www.drugabuse.gov/publications/media-guide/science-drug-use-addiction-basics.
8 U.S. Department of Justice, Drug Enforcement Administration. Drugs of Abuse: Stimulants 2017. Accessed on February 2021. Retrieved from https://www.dea.gov/sites/default/files/2018-06/drug_of_abuse.pdf.
9 Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. National Survey on Drug Use and Health: 2019. Accessed on February 2021. Retrieved from https://www.samhsa.gov/data/report/2019-nsduh-detailed-tables.
10 U.S. Department of Justice: Drug Enforcement Administration: Diversion Control Division. Program Description. Accessed on February 2021. Retrieved from https://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/prog_dscrpt/index.html.
11 Department of Health & Human Services – Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services: Partners in Integrity: What is a Prescribers Role in Preventing the Diversion of Prescription Drugs? 2014. Accessed on February 2021. Retrieved from https://dhs.iowa.gov/sites/default/files/PAOWhatIsAPrescribersRoleInPrevDrugDiv012313f.pdf?022020202118.
12 Medline Plus. Substance Use Disorder. February 2020. Accessed on February 2021. Retrieved from https://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/001522.htm.
13 U.S. Food & Drug Administration. Medication Guides for Certain Prescription Products. April 1, 2019. Accessed on February 2021. https://www.fda.gov/consumers/consumer-updates/medication-guides-certain-prescription-products.
14 National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Drug Abuse. Research Report Series: Prescription Drug Abuse. Revised October 2011. Accessed on February 2021. Retrieved from https://www.drugabuse.gov/sites/default/files/rxreportfinalprint.pdf.
15 National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Drug Abuse. Drug Screening and Assessment Resources. July 2018. Accessed on February 2021. Retrieved from https://www.drugabuse.gov/nidamed-medical-health-professionals/screening-tools-prevention.
16 Division of Human Development and Disability, National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. What States Need to Know about PDMPs. Page last updated Oct 3, 2017. Accessed on February 2021. Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/drugoverdose/pdmp/states.html.
17 Porterfield A, Engelbert K. Electronic Prescribing: Improving the Efficiency and Accuracy of Prescribing in the Ambulatory Care Setting. Perspectives in Health Information Management, Spring 2014.
18 Drug Enforcement Administration. Economic Impact Analysis of the Interim Final Prescription Rule. March 2010. Accessed on February 2021. Retrieved from https://www.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/ecomm/e_rx/eia_dea_218.pdf.
19 U.S. Food & Drug Administration. Disposal of Unused Medicines: What You Should Know 2018. Accessed on February 2021. Retrieved from https://www.fda.gov/Drugs/ResourcesForYou/Consumers/BuyingUsingMedicineSafely/EnsuringSafeUseofMedicine/SafeDisposalofMedicines/ucm186187.htm.
20 Legal Information Institute. 21 U.S. Code § 829 – Prescriptions. Accessed on February 2021. Retrieved from https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/21/829.
21 National Institute on Drug Abuse. Drug Facts: Prescription and Over-the-Counter Medications 2013. Accessed on February 2021. Retrieved from https://www.drugabuse.gov/sites/default/files/drugfacts_rx_otc_5_2_13_ew2_0.pdf.
22 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Put Your Medicines Up and Away and Out of Sight 2018. Accessed on February 2021. Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/patientsafety/features/medication-storage.html.
23 Drug Enforcement Administration. Prescription for Disaster: How Teens Misuse Medicine. Accessed on February 2021. Retrieved from https://www.dea.gov/sites/default/files/2018-11/DEA_PrescriptionForDisaster-2018ed_508.pdf.
24 U.S. Department of Justice: Drug Enforcement Administration: Diversion Control Division. Controlled Substance Public Disposal Locations – Search Utility. Accessed on February 2021. Retrieved from https://apps.deadiversion.usdoj.gov/pubdispsearch/spring/main?execution=e2s1.
25 National Association of Boards of Pharmacy: Drug Disposal Locator 2019. Accessed on February 2021. Retrieved from https://nabp.pharmacy/initiatives/awarxe/drug-disposal-locator/