Original title: Sustained increases in ADHD medication use after the COVID-19 pandemic: A nationwide register-based study
Bjørn‐Atle Reme, Jacqueline M. Cohen, Maja Weemes Grøtting · October 2026
Researchers tracked ADHD medication prescriptions across Norway from 2009 to 2024. Prescription rates remained steady for years, but accelerated sharply after 2020 across all ages and sexes. The biggest jump happened in females aged 15 to 24, whose yearly growth rate rose from 5.2% to 24.4%. Young males also saw their growth rate more than quadruple. This change did not fade when pandemic restrictions ended, showing a long-lasting shift in medical treatment.
A neighborhood library checks out roughly the same number of books every week for a decade. Suddenly, after a town disruption, checkouts do not just rise briefly; they keep climbing faster every year, especially among teenagers. The staff cannot tell if teenagers discovered reading they had always missed out on, or if classes are assigning too many books. In this paper, national records reveal that medication prescriptions climbed sharply after 2020 and never slowed down, leaving questions about whether doctors are finally spotting overlooked patients or giving out unnecessary treatments.
The pandemic altered school, work, and mental health worldwide. Knowing that ADHD medication use spiked and stayed high—especially among teenage girls and young women—helps doctors and health officials understand who is receiving care. It also raises critical questions about whether healthcare systems are catching previously missed patients or overprescribing medications.
The study cannot determine the underlying cause of the acceleration—specifically, whether it represents improved detection of previously underdiagnosed people or potential overmedication. The findings are also limited to national registry data from Norway.
Ask anything about this paper. Answers come from its abstract, and say so when the abstract doesn't cover your question.
Sustained increases in ADHD medication use after the COVID-19 pandemic: A nationwide register-based study — Bjørn‐Atle Reme, Jacqueline M. Cohen, Maja Weemes Grøtting — Scandinavian Journal of Public Health — doi:10.1177/14034948261485872
Abstract licence: CC BY
Explanation generated by Synthesis from the abstract — it is not the original paper.