Anesthesia May Increase Risk Of ADHD
By Dr. Brian McDonough, Medical Editor
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - It was a small study, but an important one. The report from the Mayo Clinic suggested that children exposed to anesthesia at a young age - two or more anesthetics by age three - had more than double the incidence of ADHD than children with no exposure.
It is a study that will need further support over time and certainly there is not much that can be done if surgery and the related anesthesia is needed, but it does lead to a very important point: everything we do in medicine, every time we interact in a person's life there is an expected response but many unexpected responses. For every positive there is one or more negatives. This is why it is important to only undergo a procedure or take a medication when it is needed. You can't take it lightly.
I bring this up because there are many over the counter products and the same rule should apply, just because something is not under a doctor's control does not mean it is not a serious medication.
Remember, many of the over the counter products we regularly use were once prescription.
