National Patient Safety Alert – ADHD drugs

Written by AlisonFreemantle on Friday 13th October 2023

Shortage of methylphenidate prolonged-release capsules and tablets, lisdexamfetamine capsules, and guanfacine prolonged-release tablets

The Patient Safety Alert can be viewed here:

At present, the supply disruptions are expected to resolve at various dates between October and December 2023.

The supply disruption of these products is caused by a combination of manufacturing issues and an increased global demand.

Other ADHD products remain available but cannot meet excessive increases in demand.

The products affected are:

Methylphenidate:*

  • Equasym XL® 10, 20 and 30 mg capsules
  • Xaggitin XL® 18 and 36 mg prolonged-release tablets
  • Concerta XL® 54 mg prolonged-release tablets
  • Xenidate XL® 27 mg prolonged-release tablets

Lisdexamfetamine:

  • Elvanse® 20, 30, 40, 50, 60 and 70 mg capsules
  • Elvanse® Adult 30, 50, and 70 mg capsules

Guanfacine:

  • Intuniv® 1, 2, 3 and 4 mg prolonged-release tablets

Hampshire & Isle of Wight ICB have put together some resources for patients and GP surgeries. Patient leaflets and resources are available on the ICB website here: 

The patient leaflets can be found towards the bottom of the page in the section called ‘medicines used to treat ADHD