I am on the daytrana patch. Recently diagnosed and I am finding it does last until I retire.

I am on 20mg and I apply in the morning at 6:30 am, go to work and have the smooth delivery last until 9:00 pm, when I get ready for bed.

It takes a good 6 weeks to indiviualize the effects. The first week I started out on 10mg and by the end of the week would start to get tired and irritable 8 hours later. Working with my therapist who explained to me that I needed to increase my dose to 15mg. That helped for a week then the tiredness and irritability ensued.

I also have the co-morbiditiy of having depression and mild anxiety so I am also taking Lexapro 20mg. By the 6 week of daytrana the positivie effects wore off. I was increased to 40mg. My partner noticed I was more agitated and had pressured speech. So now I am back down to 20mg. I find that the patch works great when you can find your correct dosage.

So I am still struggling to find that right dose. My add doctor however, states that I might be developing a tolerance. And maybe I need to switch to Adderall. I want to give mph(daytrana)ingredient (ritalin) more of a chance to achieve the desired effects that I got when I first started. The patch is new for use in adults and there is not enough evidence based research yet to help augment its use in combination with other co-morbidities that alot of adders have.

Overall, as a 45 yr adult using the patch I find it helpful. It has decreased my appetite alot and my hips are very red and itchy. My doctor has ordered the nasal spray Flonase (steroidal compound) to spray on my hips after taking the patch off at night and it has helped. I am also taking omega 3 flax seed capsule once daily to also see if I noticed a change in appetite, etc. I will try to update the forum on the daytrana patch as I noticed my personal experiences to maybe help others who are just now considering using the patch. Hang in there because oral histories will help researchers gain insight into its efficacy.

- Sherry

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I'm not getting on to anyone, but it's not good to cut the daytrana patch. It damages the time release diaphragm that is in it. When you cut it, it allows extra med to gradually ooze out of the side of the patch. It is no longer working as it was intended too. Call your doc. and tell them what is going on.

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My son's doctor just suggested the patch for him. We are going to try it upon returning to school after the weekend. He is 10 and we are trying 10 mg. I am hoping for less irritability after school.

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My son is on 20 mg. He can't swallow pills so we thought this would be perfect for him. He only wears one on school days and even then he complains constantly about the rash it causes and the itching. He also likes to eat and of course the patches ruin his appetite. I'm wondering if we shouldn't switch to a pill we can put into food. Is there anything that successfully curbs the itch?

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We started using the patch for my 10 yr old when it first came on the market (over a year ago). For many months, it really tore my daughter's skin up. We used cortaid nightly on her skin to help with the itch and redness. She wouldn't take a pill (whole, sprinkled or crushed) and wouldn't take a liquid, so it was really our only option. We kept at it and eventually (after several months) her skin got accustomed to it and tolerates it much better now. BTW, our therapist began working with her on taking AdderallXR sprinkled but we found that it wore off much more quickly than the patch. Our MD allows us to put the patch on at 6am (school starts at 8am) and take it off at 5pm. It's the longest coverage out there - and it makes a huge difference!

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I disagree about the dangers of cutting the patch. We have been doing with both my kids with no adverse effect.

Remember, the dosage is selected WITH the cut there - so any "extra" leakage would be factored in.

IMHO, the "extra" is insignificant. Just look at the thickness of the cut - a thousandth of an inch? in relation to the totality.

My son has no skin reaction to the patch but my daughter does get itchy. Alternating sides helps as does olive oil.

BTW, my son (14) found it helped him a lot to just keep the patch on until the next morning when the new ones (he is on 60mg) went on. This way he avoided the down part which is when he used to get depression with adderall.

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This has been researched and found not true. Quote:

badger said: I'm not getting on to anyone, but it's not good to cut the daytrana patch. It damages the time release diaphragm that is in it. When you cut it, it allows extra med to gradually ooze out of the side of the patch. It is no longer working as it was intended too. Call your doc. and tell them what is going on.

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My son was taking Vyvanse, but his appetite was very diminished. When I voiced my concern to his doctor, the doctor suggested switching to the patch because "it is absorbed through the skin and not the stomach." I have seen several posts here that say the patch causes decreased appetite. My son has not been on the patch long enough to see a difference, but now I'm concerned that our doctor was either blowing smoke or doesn't know what he's talking about! The Vyvanse was working great (although he needed to increase the dose) but I was very pleased with the results. Why would the doctor make this up?

(By the way, our doctor said the patch could be cut to adjust the dose, but I had keep him informed. There is nothing in the drug literature that says "do not cut")

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Since the daytrana patch is being discussed, I thought I'd share a scary (albeit unusual) experience we had in case it can help someone else.... My daughter is 16 and began using the patch last spring when she was first diagnosed with ADD. From the beginning, the drug worked great -- the improvement to her focus was immediate and dramatic -- HOWEVER, she always had irritation and redness at the sites where the patch was applied.

One day she broke out in raised, itchy hives all over her body and was having difficulty breathing. I took her to an emergency care center. I thought she was having a reaction to something she had eaten or come in contact with. The doctors there determined that she was having an allergic reaction to the adhesive used in the Daytrana patch. She was instructed to stop using the patch and they prescribed steroids and an anti-inflamatory cream. After several days, the hives and itching went away. After 10 days, she resumed her meds, this time taking concerta -a pill version of the drug used in the patch. The hives and shortness of breath returned immediately! After researching further, we learned that once the body has an allergic reaction to an adhesive, it can also develop an "associative" allergic reaction and intolerance to the medicine on the patch. The body associates the drug with the allergy to the adhesive and reacts in the same way.

Having said all of this, I don't think that this type of reaction occurs very frequently. I have been told that she can no longer take concerta or any other form of that particular drug...and probably will never be able to do so! Luckily there are other options out there -- she is currently taking adderall and seems to be tolerating it well.

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There are a few things you can do to prevent the rash:

1) Refridgerate the patches as soon as you get the box. Pull one out of the refridgerator only when ready to use. 2) Switch hips each day. For a while, using Goo Gone to remove the adhesive before bath/shower can help. 3) Place patch even on weekends. Skipping a day can return a child's skin sensitive again.

Be patient, as it can take a month of constant placement to stop the sensitivity and rash. If none of these ideas help, your child may be allergic to the adhesive, especially if they are latex sensitive or allergic.

I hope this helps immensly!!!

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To momgrandma: Vyvanse can be disolved in water and drank if your child will not take a pill. Any time a child develops a rash becuase of a medicaiton they are having some type of alergic reaction to either the medication or the adheasive and other alternatives should be researched.

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If the patch irritates his skin just rub some hydrocortison cream after taking it off that should help thats what the DR. told me to do and it helps.

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Our grandson, for whom we are guardians, tried almost every med out there for ADD (no hyperactivity) since he was about 8. He is now 15 and started the patch last year. He uses the 20 mg. Daytrana patch. He, too, had some itching when he first started wearing the patch, but it went away. The thing we've found most beneficial is the gradual absorption of the medication. When he took XR versions of any other med, he had serious ups and downs (mood swings) Also, probably because of his personal stomach chemistry, the pills were absorbed more quickly and wore off just after lunch. Then he would become alternately angry and/or depressed. Not a happy way for a kid to feel. There is none of that with the patch. He puts it on at 7 a.m. and removes it about 5 pm. Since it seriously diminishes his appetite, we let him eat two suppers...one when the rest of us eat (but he's not really hungry) and the rest of his meal or a meaningful snack around 9 pm. He eats a reasonably good breakfast, but not much lunch. He is maintaining his weight. Wouls love to talk with others grandmom's raising teenage boys with ADD.

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My 13 yr old son has ADHD/ Mood disorder and has been on daytrana for 1 year. He has the redness also. If he removes it with makeup remover it comes off more easily and the redness isn't as bad . Afterwards he showers and dries the area well. We switch hips everyday. Some people may get them off better with alcohol or goo be gone. Lift corner have product ready wipe as you remove. I had difficulty peeling the patches at times until I found out ref. helps them peel like cake. If your childs patches are covered by insurance FYI mine insurance company it will not cont. coverage if the child is over the age of 12. We obtained a physician auth. sent to the Insurance company who finally paid all of the 189.00 except for the max co-pay. prior to turning 13. I have tried everthing to get coverage because they have helped him so much along with Ritalin 30 mg in the am and 10 mg at lunch. He has had problems since age 5 we have been through every medication. So, far this combination has been the most help. He also, has a 504 plan at school , a weekly visit to a therapist and a now stay at home mom. You proably already know these things. Never know. Hope something helps. We have experimented on many products for patch removal so, be careful about how your skin could react to my suggestions. Make-up remover works best for us. I contacted daytrana to see if they could send any information or research on teens or adults that states it's just as effective. This is the only way the insurance would reconsider coverage. They rapidly replied they have no documentation as to testing and effectiveness in teens or adults. So, we can cont. to use at our cost. He is on AB honor roll for the first time and the teachers working with him due to 504 with current minimal accommodations at this time. Like giving test back if he finishes to fast and having him go over the work until the bell rings. He looses papers frequently and have tried many organization tools. I check his grades on the computer daily. If I see a 0 I e-mail the teacher and ask whats going on. We meet after each report card good or bad grades. He is in builders club, tech club, has been able to keep his mood in control by talking with counselor or principle if he feel out of control. I could write what I've been through with him for years. This has been a really good year so far. Communication, 504 accommodations, and my constant grade checks and meetings have helped. He played football this year and it helped him make friends, since he doesn't or hasn't done that well in the past. This year he has his first friend. That's the best gift He could have. Well I've talked enough. Thanks, for listening.

a loving and devoted mom.

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Hi,

I started putting lotion on my son's hips after I took the patch off at night and that helped with getting the adhesive off and seemed to help with the irritation as well. My son is 10 years old and takes 20mg he was on 15mg and we just upped it 2 weeks ago. He seems to be more irritable than normal so I think I may try cutting a portion of the patch off to give him around a 17mg dose to see if that helps.

Thanks for the suggestion,

I'm just a dad

One other note we put Austin's patches in the refrigerator once when we had problems getting the backing off the adhesive and I swear they didn't uptake as well....anyone else find that? or maybe it was me that was having the off day .....

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While I know that the instructions clearly say do not cut the patch I have done so with other medications without problems. The true problem is that one is no longer certain of the dosing if it is cut. If your child is extremely dose sensitive it may be a problem. If it works well for your child it shouldn't be a problem. That is both my practical experience and medical experience as I am a nurse and father-in-law is a pharmacist.

The problem with the patch irritation may be controlled better with benadryl cream than with steroid creme upon removing the patch at night. The other thing I try to do is use an adhesive remover (specifically for skin, obtained from a medical supply store) to remove the leftover adhesive. Decrease the amount of time the irritant is on the skin overall and it may be less irritating on a daily basis. On the other hand, I have noticed that some days his skin is just more red than others and am not certain exactly why.

I also work very hard to completely rotate sites so I am not placing it over the same spot. Has anyone tried using a site other than the hip? My husband tried the small of his back one day and it didn't seem to change the effect of the medication. Theoretically it shouldn't matter but I am not certain and have been unable to find any literature on why placement should be just on the hip.

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You can also use baby oil to remove the adhesive as it is the same active ingredient as in the adhesive remover patches and is cheaper. I also have been a nurse for 15 years.

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Thank you for letting me know more about the daytrana patch. I had no idea that it had a cut here mark. It's always good to learn more information on these things.

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Good Evening All!

Merlin, I asked my doc why the placement on the hip and if I could put it elsewhere, and she told me that the company only did trials with the patch on the hip, so since that was how the trials went, that is how they recommend it. I asked why they only did the hip, and she said something about bathing suits and people wearing them during summertime. Can't guarentee that this is the reason, but this is the answer I got from my doc.

I had both my children on Daytrana and loved it. My 7 year old son was not as responsive as my 10 year old daughter, so I ended up switching him to Focalin XR. A few months later we did the same with my daughter for the itchy, painful patch areas. She just couldn't take it anymore, and we had tried everything from benedryl to hydrocortozone (sp). Anyway, if they find a way to improve the adhesive issue, I would put her back on it as the Focalin doesn't work as well with her.

leisa

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i was using cortisone 1% hydrocortisone anti itch cream doctor said not good to use everyday so my doctor recommended aquaphor (its a skin protectant for dry cracked or irritated skin) also she said i can use caladryl for itch relief hope this helps

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momgrandma said: My son is on 20 mg. He can't swallow pills so we thought this would be perfect for him. He only wears one on school days and even then he complains constantly about the rash it causes and the itching. He also likes to eat and of course the patches ruin his appetite. I'm wondering if we shouldn't switch to a pill we can put into food. Is there anything that successfully curbs the itch?

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My son and I are both on the Daytrana patch. We are not experiencing skin irritation from the adhesive, it is from the medicine. It hurts/burn/itches as soon as we put it on. We tried taking the patch off with olive oil and baby oil, but that didn't alleviate the problem. We have red squares/rectangles on our hips from the patch. If we get it further over to the sides of our hips, it really hurts. We both have scabs on our hips from the itching. The doctor told us to try Flonase on the area first, then put the patch on. That may help a little, but it is still bad. I tried giving benedryl to my son, but that doesn't seem to help, either. Daytrana is the only med that has worked, and when he wears the patch he is a great kid! When he doesn't, he's angry, depressed, hyper, etc. I would like to keep using it, but he fights me on it because of the skin irritation.

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my son is on the daytrana patch and the neuropsych also suggested with you a catapress patch. catapress is clonodine and generally considered a blood pressure medicine but it does something else that is helpful, when the daytrana wears off and he still has the catapress on he doesnt crash so hard.

catapress patches are supposed to stay on 3 days so i believe it has a calming effect after time.

im not a doctor i am just sharing my experience

bill m.

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my 6 yr old son has been on focalin for a year now and does great at school the teacher has had no problems except the 3 times we forgot his med in which case i recieved a phone call "did austin get his meds?". so this has been working great during the day. the problem is he gets his med bout 7 am and around 3 it seems to have worn off. He just got kicked out of his after school program for uncontrolable behavior. I spoke to his dr and she prescribed him clonidine a few months ago and it zombied him even tryin half pill. so i discontinued because that is not what i am wanting i just want a son that is not definant, aggressive, and as i call him a pinball. i was told about the daytrane patches and wasn't sure if should try this since i know his focalin is working at school. wandering if anyone had any feedback for me. I am at my wits end my whole evening is consumed with disaplining him and its not fair to him, me, or his 2 brothers. any comments or suggestion would be appreciated.

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