Welcome to DocDiller.com
I'm a behavioral/developmental pediatrician who has been on the front-lines of clinical practice with ADHD, ODD, OCD, ASD, learning problems for nearly forty years. I've written some books and numerous articles for professionals and the public. My opinions have been expressed not only on television and radio, but also in front of Congress and the President's Council on Bioethics.
Whether you're looking for an sensible expert to help you make decisions about your child locally or are interested in the opinions of a doctor who prescribes medications to children but takes a broader look at the issues involved, you've come to the right place. Take a look at the opeds. Get some answers to questions on ADHD and psychiatric drugs for children.
My Uneasy Marriage to Ritalin
- Details
- Category: Opinions & Editorials Opinions & Editorials
- Published: 30 December 2013 30 December 2013
Posted first: 12/23/2013 12:44 pm on the Huffington Post (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/larry-diller/ritalin_b_4470702.html?view=screen)
I've been uncomfortably married to Ritalin for 35 years. That's how long as a behavioral pediatrician I've been prescribing stimulant drugs like Ritalin, Adderall and Concerta to children and adults in my suburban private practice outside of San Francisco.
Prescription stimulants, which are all a version of amphetamine, have been controversial since their introduction in 1929. They are front-page news again. This Sunday's New York Times offers a detailed report on the role of drug companies' influence through advertising, medical education and research on attention deficit disorder (ADD) and its treatment. Today one in seven American children have been told they "have" ADD.
Grand Rounds at Children's Hospital Oakland on August 13th
I will be giving a very popular talk, The Sensible and Ethical Prescription of Psychiatric Drugs to Children, at Grand Rounds at Children's Hospital Oakland on Tuesday August 13th from 8 to 9 am. There will be a question and answer period at the end of the presentation. The talk is open to the public. Please join me at the Auditorium in the Outpatient Center at Children's Hospital, 744 52nd St., Oakland. Parking is available across the street from the Outpatient Center.
Why Not Adderall for Finals Week
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- Category: Opinions & Editorials Opinions & Editorials
- Published: 08 June 2013 08 June 2013
(first appeared on June 6th, 2013 on Huffington Post website)
Having prescribed drugs like Ritalin and Adderall to children for 35 years, I've participated with concerned fascination in the ADHD/ADD epidemic that has swept our country. Still, I was surprised that I felt so troubled when 16-year-old Joe's* mother, Susan*, called me the other day and asked if I'd be willing to prescribe him Adderall just for his finals coming up in two weeks.
Rx for S.S.D. (Sick Society Disorder)
- Details
- Category: Opinions & Editorials Opinions & Editorials
- Published: 18 April 2013 18 April 2013
(This article first appeared in the Huffington Post on 4/16/13)
Shock and incredulity greeted a front-page New York Times article last week that nearly 1 in 5 American high school boys had attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The Times analysis of the most recent Center for Disease Control (CDC) survey of 76,000 households had the overall rate of ADHD for children ages 5 to 17 at 11 percent. Approximately 6.4 million children have received the diagnosis. Two-thirds of those with a current diagnosis were receiving prescription stimulant drugs like Adderall, Ritalin or Concerta. Annual sales last year of these drugs reached $9 billion.