Kids with ADHD have reason to hope

A.J. Copeland, 13, of Washington, D.C., started eighth grade this month with an announcement: "He said, 'I'm going to make all A's this year,' " recalls his mother, Tamara Copeland.

For a boy who was diagnosed at age 6 with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and who has struggled with school, that statement might seem unrealistic. But his mother is cautiously optimistic: Thanks to years of trial and error with medications and behavior-changing strategies, A.J. may well be turning a corner, she says. Though improvements have been "erratic," A.J.'s new attitude is a good sign, she says. "It says to me that he is beginning to understand he is part of controlling his destiny."

The Copelands and millions of other families have reason for hope as another challenging school year begins for children with the common disorder: According to a study updated this summer, most children treated for ADHD — whether with medication, behavioral therapy or both — do improve over time.

The roles of specific therapies and educational strategies remain unclear. Children who received medication, with frequent checkups to adjust doses and drug choices, did best in the first 14 months of the study. But that advantage waned by the three-year mark, according to a set of reports in the August Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.

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