subject: New alternative treatment for Inattentive Attention Deficit Disorder (Inattentive ADD) [print this page] New alternative treatment for Inattentive Attention Deficit Disorder (Inattentive ADD)
For treatment of Inattentive Attention Deficit Disorder, (Inattentive ADD), the most prescribed treatment is stimulant drugs. Some individuals with Inattentive ADD, however, prefer to not take stimulant drugs because they may have increased symptoms of anxiety or have problems with depression when treated with stimulants and for those people Guanfacine is a possible treatment to pontentially alleviate inattentive symptoms.
Guanfacine is an Alpha2 receptor treatmentthat has been prescribed, in addition to the stimulant ,treatments to treat Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Inattentive ADD. Tenex (Guanfacine) is a blood pressure treatment that was coincidentally found to help individuals with ADHD and with Inattentive ADD. Tenex can be sedating and doctors have also used this treatment to help with the insomnia and sleep difficulties experienced by some patients with a diagnosis of ADHD and Inattentive ADD. Though Guanfacine is used to manage hypertension or high blood pressure, the majority of people with ADD Inattentive and ADHD who are medicated with this treatment do not get a low blood pressure.
The scientific basis of these treatments is relatively new but some pharmacist believe that it may be the alpha2 receptor treatments, and not the stimulants, that better treat the signs of inattention seen in patients with Inattentive ADD. Researchers think that while the stimulants work to decrease inattention, they do not begin to really address the causative issues at the Pre-frontal Cortex that are bringing on the problems seen in Inattentive ADD.
Guanfacine acts on the Pre-frontal Cortex (PFC), the portion of the brain that handles attention, impulsive behavior, hyperactivity, and working memory and by influencing the work of the alpha2 receptors in the PFC portion of the brain, improves symptoms such as poorly functioning working memory, inattention and the other often seen symptoms of ADD Inattentive and ADHD.
Alpha-2A adrenergic receptors also improve brain connections. These receptors are stimulated by Guanfacine and improve the connectivity of PFC networks and, in this manner, improve working memory and diminish distractability.
Unlike the stimulants, Guanfacine brings on these benefits to the PFC even in the event of stress. Stress has been shown to temporarily disconnect the PFC networks which can make the symptoms of Inattentive ADD much worse. Guanfacine is now made in a long acting form that can be prescribed once a day. Who knows? Guanfacine may become the future 'gold standard' of treatment for the signs of Inattentive ADD. Only the passage of time will tell.
