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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
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Posted by citiboy on September 15, 1999, at 0:52:21
My friend's nine year old son has been taking Ritalin for HADD for the past two years. Lately he has been
complaining about his eyes; i.e., blurry vision, sitting too close to the television, can't see the blackboard, etc.
When my friend took the boy to an eye doctor, it was determined that he was suffering from "DECREASED ACCOMMODATION" due to the
Ritalin. Now the boy has to wear bi-focal eye glasses because of this drug. My questions related to this incident are as follows:
1) Though the doctor said this condition was "rare," just how rare is it? Where can I find statistics?
2) Ritalin has been kicking around since the late 1960s. How is it that this vision problem shows up now?
3) Supposedly the ocular side effects are reversible, but somehow I don't believe this. Can this be verified
either way?If this boy's vision has been permanently damaged by Ritalin, wouldn't this provide the fodder for a class action suit?
Thanks for your responses.
Citiboy
-----------------------------
"...the Citi never sleeps..."
Posted by Steve on September 15, 1999, at 13:16:55
In reply to Ritalin & Ocular Side Effects, posted by citiboy on September 15, 1999, at 0:52:21
I had the same problems with Ritalin, and my
understanding is that this is due to ritalin's
acting at some Noradrenalin receptors. Drugs
that block those receptors lower the pressure in
the eyes, so it would stand to reason that drugs
that do the opposite have the opposite effect.However I have had some extremely vehement
reactions to doses of Ritalin that were 3% of the
maximum that can be prescribed, so I would say
that it is rare.In my case the effects did reverse themselves within
a few days, but they had also already began to
bother me with in 3 days of starting the
medication, at which point I stopped taking it.I very much doubt that you will be able to sue
Novartis, much less start a class action suit,
as all medications tend to have extreme results
in a minority of patients; it is up to doctors to
anticipate and react to these side-effects.
Posted by Ian on September 17, 1999, at 11:02:18
In reply to Ritalin & Ocular Side Effects, posted by citiboy on September 15, 1999, at 0:52:21
If you want to find support and information against Ritalin then www.breggin.com would be a good starting point. It is slightly worrying that 5% of the US school age children are on this drug. As I've heard Breggin himself say, Ritalin is not a nutritional suppliment its an amphetamine derivative that can often cause many of the symptoms that its purported to treat.
There is also a lady called Sue Parry who is a very active speaker against the rather unscientific diagnosis of ADHD and the market for Ritalin it has created. If anyone has the information or links you need then it would probably be her, address
7353 85th PL SE
Mercer island
Washington .
98040I haven't personally looked her up on the net but I'd be surprised if she hasn't put some of the papers she's published on it.
Best of luck Citiboy
Regards
Ian-who likes sleeping alot
Posted by Ian on September 17, 1999, at 12:04:45
In reply to Re: Ritalin & Ocular Side Effects, posted by Ian on September 17, 1999, at 11:02:18
After writing my reply curiosity overcame me,seems like Sue must be a techno-phobe rather than a techno-phile as there's sparse reference to her on the net. One rather interesting letter I found was at //home.attnet/~Fred-Alden/Es24.html. If I were you I'd e-mail the Breggins from their site and they could probably advise you best,
Ian
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