OFFICIALS WORRY RITALIN BEING ABUSED BY TEENS

CHICAGO - Already controversial as a prescription drug, the mild
stimulant Ritalin may be gaining popularity as a recreational drug for
teens and pre-teens.

Officials at a middle school in Chicago's suburbs announced this week
that they had disciplined 15 students accused of selling or abusing
the drug. Federal drug enforcers list it among the top controlled
prescription drugs reported stolen in the United States. Its street
names include "Vitamin R" and "R-Ball."

Some psychiatrists point out that no definitive studies exist on the
extent of Ritalin abuse and that it is milder than other stimulants.
Even so, the Drug Enforcement Administration lists Ritalin, also known
as methylphenidate or MPH, as one of the agency's "drugs of concern."

"It has the potential for abuse, so we would be looking at that and
we'll continue to monitor it," said DEA spokeswoman Rogene Waite.

Ritalin is commonly prescribed to young children with attention
deficit hyperactivity disorder. Some experts contend that is often
unnecessarily given to rambunctious children and that its long-term
effects are unclear.

According to the DEA, a 1997 Indiana University survey of 44,232 young
people showed that nearly 7 percent of high school students reported
using Ritalin recreationally at least once in the previous year, and
2.5 percent reported using it monthly or more often.

Emergency room admissions studied by the federal Substance Abuse and
Mental Health Services Administration found that in 1995 and 1996,
patients ages 10 to 14 were just as likely to mention methylphenidate
as cocaine in a drug-related emergency room episode. Nearly 75 percent
said they had been using the drug for psychic effects or recreation.

Brooke Molina, assistant professor of psychiatry at the University of
Pittsburgh School of Medicine, warned against giving too much weight
to such anecdotal reports. "There is no data to tell us that there is
rampant abuse going on," Molina said.

Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corp., the maker of Ritalin, said in a
statement that millions of ADHD patients have been treated safely
using the drug.

Recreational users probably take more than the recommended doses of
the drug to increase its stimulant effect, said Jerry Frankenheim, a
pharmacologist with the National Institute on Drug Abuse.

He said high doses of Ritalin may cause convulsions, increased blood
pressure, weight loss, loss of appetite, nervousness, insomnia and
psychosis. The DEA also points out that abusers can become
psychologically dependent on the drug.