At the time this study was conducted, the use of clonidine in combination with psychostimulant medication to treat hyperactive children was common in practice, but had limited supporting evidence. There were also concerns about the safety of clonidine with children. A project was funded to conduct a randomized controlled trial of this combination treatment (Hazell and Stuart, 2003). The trial found that clonidine-treated children were more likely to show improved conduct than those given placebo. Treatment was found to be well tolerated and side effects were transient. This research clearly demonstrated for the first time the usefulness of clonidine as a treatment for these children. The importance of this research was acknowledged when the authors received the Elaine Schlosser Journal Award on Attention Deficit Disorder from the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry in 2004.

Professor Philip Hazell – Mental Health Grant (2003) University of Newcastle, NSW.