WHO Model Lists of Essential Medicines: methylphenidate for ADHD in children and adolescents

Davide Papola and colleagues1 reviewed the applications of mental health treatments submitted to the 24th WHO Expert Committee on the Selection and Use of Essential Medicines in 2022 and discussed the challenges and potential solutions to improve the update process of the lists. We focus on the previous Committee's puzzling decision not to support the inclusion of methylphenidate as an essential medicine for the treatment of ADHD in children and adolescents. ADHD is one of the most common mental conditions in childhood.