Bupropion for ADHD in Adolescents With Substance Use Disorder

Summary

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is one of the most common co-occurring psychiatric disorders (30-50%) in adolescents with substance use disorders (SUD). Yet, little is known about the safety and efficacy of medications for ADHD in adolescents with SUD, since such youths have been excluded from most medication trials. Clinicians are therefore understandably reluctant to treat ADHD in substance abusing adolescents, often first referring such youths to substance treatment. Untreated ADHD is associated with poorer substance treatment outcomes. We address this research gap by proposing a randomized controlled trial of bupropion vs placebo in 130 adolescents (13-19 years) with Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM IV) ADHD, nicotine dependence and cannabis use disorder (not excluding other SUD). Participants in both bupropion and placebo treatment groups will receive weekly individual manualized-standardized cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) targeting SUD (at no cost to them) throughout the 16 weeks of the medication trial. Bupropion also is effective in treating nicotine dependence in adults; the majority of adolescents with marijuana and other drug abuse also smoke tobacco. More recent research in adults indicates that bupropion may reduce craving and use of other substances of abuse (e.g. methamphetamine, cocaine). It's possible impact on cannabis use disorder (the addiction for which most teens are referred to treatment) has not yet been evaluated. However since all drugs of abuse have a final common pathway leading to addiction via action in the so called brain reward system (ventral tegmental area (VTA), accumbens) -an important secondary aim is to evaluate bupropion's potential impact on craving and use of marijuana (MJ) in addition to its known similar action on nicotine.

Conditions

• Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
• Nicotine Dependence
• Cannabis Use Disorder

Interventions

DRUG

Bupropion

Bupropion (target dose 300 mg/day) + cognitive behavioral therapy; matched placebo + cognitive behavioral therapy

OTHER

Placebo

Sponsors & Collaborators

• National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)

  collaborator NIH

• University of Colorado, Denver

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Paula D Riggs, M.D. · University of Colorado, Denver

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

QUADRUPLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

13 Years

Max Age

19 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2009-01-31

Primary Completion

2013-05-31

Completion

2013-05-31

Countries

• United States

Study Locations