Risperdal for children side effects
Common Questions and Answers about Risperdal for children side effects
risperdal
//www.tardive-dyskinesia.com/risperdal/index.
I must disagree with the other poster. Risperdal was approved by the FDA for use in children on the spectrum in 2006 to treat *repeated* bouts of aggression and irritability as are other anti-psychotics. My son was diagnosed with Asperger's when he was 3 and has been taking Risperidone (Risperdal) for 4 years in varying dosages. Without it he could not have attended mainstream schooling as his aggressive outbursts were a danger to himself, other children and adults.
These serious anti-psychotic medications have NEVER been formally tested on children - meaning there is no conclusive medical research regarding the effects of these kinds of meds on children. These meds can cause extreme side effects in adults. God knows how a 2 1/2 year old would react.
Speech therapy is definitely a good idea. Best to start this while the child is young.
What kind of behavior is your child exhibiting to make the doc suspect ADHD?
But for me any kind of medication is the last resort, especially whilst their brains are growing. All medicines have side effects. Some of the medication prescribed for autism/ADHD can have permanent effects such as tics etc. Also, you don't have a diagnosis yet, so how do they know what to prescribe? I know other parents who have had hormes prescribed to help with sleep.
My son took risperdal for a long time for his mood disorder. He was very manic without it. The side affect that concerned me was the eating. Sometimes he would eat until he vomited. Apparently, risperdal turns off the switch in the brain that signals fullness. His eating was becoming a real problem, so we asked about Abilify. He's been on that a good while, and it works. He's taking 5mg 3 times per day. It's not perfect, but it's better than the rages.
It is interesting that they started him on Risperdal instead of a stimulant med. Risperdal is a great med for bipolar - especially dysphoric manias and/or mixed states instead of euphoric manias. So I am guessing that early on they might have been having trouble figuring out if he had Bipolar or ADHD?
At any rate, that is a tough combination for a child to have - and perhaps even harder on the parent.
The problem is that both areas need to be treated.
These type of anti-psychotic drugs have never been tested on children so the long term side effects of children using this drug are relatively unknown. My brother was put on this drug when he was younger and has suffered from extreme weight gain and facial tics. The tics never go away - even with stopping the drug. Risperdal is not usually used for PTSD or ADHD as it is an anti-psychotic. What symptoms is your son having that the Risperdal is supposed to be treating?
I think the problem is more the Risperdal then the Concerta. Side effects listed for Risperdal include - Aggressive behavior, agitation, anxiety, stiffness or weakness of the arms or legs, tic-like or twitching movements, trembling and shaking of the fingers and hands, trouble sleeping, and twisting body movements.
The site said to, "Check with your doctor immediately if any of the following side effects occur while taking risperidone:" talking about those mentioned above.
Did the tics begin after he started taking risperdal? I know that one of the side effects, though rare, is tics. May I ask why he is on risperdal? Not trying to pry but a heavy medication like that, if used over a long period of time, can have pretty serious side effects on children.
You're not doing anything wrong and I can only imagine how hard this must be on both him and you. I'd consider a second opinion if this neurologist can't figure it out.
I am NOT at all a fan of giving young children heavy duty psych meds. Actually, treating children for psych disorders is TRICKY tricky business. The assessment process is very very difficult and often leads to misdiagnosis. It's very hard to assess a young child who hasn't grown, matured and even really begun learning. There are many doctors who won't really even acknowledge the validity of a child psych diagnosis, because of the above reasons I mentioned.
Okay, let me ask this a different way? I want to get off the saphris because of the side effects but am afraid of being suicidal again. I'd heard Risperdal is used as a "booster" med for people being on anti-depressants. I take 40mg citalopram (generic version of celexa) and 225 mg Venlafaxine (for effexor) each day, then went to 5mg saphris in am and bedtime. I wondered about using Risperdal hoping not to have the same side effects.
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