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US parents sue psychiatrists for promoting Ritalin

Fred Charatan, Florida

Two lawsuits have been filed in federal courts in the US states of California and New Jersey asserting that the Novartis Pharmaceutical Corporation and the American Psychiatric Association conspired to create a market for methylphenidate (Ritalin), the drug used to treat hyperactive children, and expand its use.

One of the leading lawyers in the class action suits is Richard Scruggs, who won a landmark settlement between state attorneys general and the tobacco industry in 1998. The American Psychiatric Association would not comment on the lawsuits because it had not yet been served with the relevant legal documents.

These two new lawsuits come on top of a class action lawsuit launched in Texas last May by the Dallas law firm Waters and Kraus. The suit alleged: "Ciba/Novartis planned, conspired, and colluded to create, develop and promote the diagnosis of Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) in a highly successful effort to increase the market for its product Ritalin."

It continued: "The American Psychiatric Association (APA) `conspired, colluded and cooperated with the other Defendants' while taking financial contributions from Ciba as well as other members of the pharmaceutical industry..."

The defendants "manufactured a disease," asserted Mr Scruggs. "It has been grossly overprescribed. It is a huge risk."

John Coale, a Washington lawyer who is also involved in the lawsuits, said that the litigation was brought because Novartis and the psychiatric group promoted the idea that many children had attention deficit disorder and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder as a way of expanding the market for the drug. "They were giving this stuff away like candy," Mr Coale said.

The association issued a statement in July in response to the Texas class action lawsuit. It said: "Allegations that the American Psychiatric Association conspired with others to create the diagnoses of Attention Deficit Disorder and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder as part of its Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) so that medication could be used to treat these disorders are ludicrous and totally false.

"The APA will defend itself vigorously by presenting a mountain of scientific evidence to refute these meritless allegations, and we are confident that we will prevail."

(Credit: AP PHOTO/JIM MCKNIGHT) Kyle Carroll sits with his parents, Jill and Michael, who are being made to administer Ritalin to him under a court order or lose him on grounds of neglect. Other parents are now suing psychiatrists for creating a market for the drug