Research: Use of Clonidine in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

Authored by Ming, X., Gorden E., Kang N., and Wagner GC in Brain & Development, Volume 30, Issue 7, p. 454-460, (2008).

Article summary (posted Sep 15, 2008):

Clonidine may help with sleep and mood problems in children with autism.

Clonidine acts on the brainstem and decreases heart rate and blood pressure. Clonidine also seems to help with sleep problems and behavior problems such as aggression, mood problems, and attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). More and more doctors are giving clonidine to children. This open label study was designed to see if the drug clonidine was able to help with sleep and behavior problems in 19 children with autism. The study results were based largely on parent reports.

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You can access the original abstract and the complete paper is sometimes available for free via Google Scholar (look for entries that say "PDF" or "HTML" on the right side of the page).
aggressive behavior, attention, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), autism, autism spectrum disorder (ASD), Catapres - Duraclon (clonidine), doctor, drug, heart, hyperactivity, mood, parent, pressure, sleep, sleep disorder
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