Does hair zinc predict amphetamine improvement of ADD/hyperactivity?
In 18 boys with ADHD (ages 6-12) in a balanced crossover design, parent and teacher hyperactivity rating differences between one month of dextroamphetamine and one month of placebo correlated significantly (p less than .05, 2 tailed) on Pearson's r with baseline hair zinc levels and nonsignificantly with 24-hour urinary zinc excretion. The signs of the correlations were such that a higher baseline zinc predicted a better placebo-controlled response to amphetamine. Patient baseline urinary zinc was significantly (p less than .02) lower than 7 normal controls. These findings are compatible with the possibility that some ADHD children may be mildly deficient in zinc and constitute poorer stimulant responders. Correlations of zinc levels with 24-hour urinary MHPG were in the expected direction but nonsignificantly by 2-tailed test.
Arnold
L E
LE
Department of Psychiatry, Ohio State University, Columbus 43210.
Votolato
N A
NA
Kleykamp
D
D
Baker
G B
GB
Bornstein
R A
RA
D001289:Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000523:psychology; D002395:Catecholamines / Q000652:urine; D002648:Child; D003913:Dextroamphetamine / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006197:Hair / Q000737:chemistry*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008734:Methoxyhydroxyphenylglycol / Q000652:urine; D011379:Prognosis; D015032:Zinc / Q000032:analysis* / Q000652:urine
D002395:Catecholamines; D008734:Methoxyhydroxyphenylglycol; D015032:Zinc; D003913:Dextroamphetamine