From Publishers Weekly
Harvard researcher and practitioner Wilens presents a straightforward view of the medication options available to children with emotional, developmental and behavioral disorders. Parents coping with the weighty decisions surrounding the issue of pharmacotherapy for children will find this an informative guidebook. Wilens answers common questions parents ask when a practitioner prescribes a medication for their child and gives practical information on how to weigh the risks and benefits, including keeping a medication log to track a particular medication's efficacy. A helpful section of the book describes each disorder (schizophrenia, conduct disorder, depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, etc.) and outlines the possible treatment plans, including information on specific drugs and their side effects. While some of the treatment plans may sound frightening (one child sampled nine different medications before reaching an effective treatment for anxiety and ADHD, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder), Wilens's intent is clearly to educate parents concerning the complicated nature and treatment of many of these disorders. The author's straight talk about medications will help parents become "informed collaborators" in their child's psychiatric care.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Library Journal
These three books explore the controversial phenomena of ADHD, which affects two million children in the United States, where about 80 percent of all Ritalin is consumed. Walker, a neurologist/psychiatrist, contends that parents are often intimidated into accepting Ritalin for their children before a complete diagnosis is made and more benign therapies tried. He posits many other causes of hyperactivity, evaluates nondrug therapies, and suggests ways parents can become advocates for their troubled children. Comparing Ritalin to cocaine, Walker classes it with other psychostimulants in terms of addiction and potentially lethal side effects. The broader field of child psychiatry is the domain of Wilens's book. A Harvard psychiatry professor, researcher, and clinician, he presents a valuable "insider's" guide to specific disorders (e.g., ADHD, depression, anxiety, autism). Filled with helpful tables and charts, definitions, commonly asked questions, and sources for further information and support, this book should empower parents to become collaborators in their children's care. Like Walker's compendium of responsible warnings, this user-friendly catalog of current drug information is recommended for public libraries. In contrast, DeGrandpre's (psychology, St. Michael's Coll., VT) scholarly work ventures beyond simple skepticism and quibbling about overdiagnosis to question psychiatry's identification of ADHD as a biologically based brain disease. He argues that societal adjustments and a change in human consciousness are the real antidotes for this development disorder. Viewing hyperactivity in a multidisciplinary context, Ritalin Nation is richly referenced and offers a critical perspective suited to academic and specialized collections. [See also "Paying Attention to Attention Deficit Disorders," LJ 1/99, p. 59-62.]?Antoinette Brinkman, Southwest Indiana Mental Health Ctr. Lib., Evansvill.
-?Antoinette Brinkman, Southwest Indiana Mental Health Ctr. Lib., EvansvilleCopyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.
