Use of methylphenidate and risk for valvular heart disease: A case-control study nested in the BIFAP cohort

To examine the association between use of methylphenidate and the risk for valvular heart disease (VHD) in the Spanish primary care database BIFAP.

Case-control study nested in a cohort of patients aged 5 to 25 years between 2002 and 2014, based in a general practice research database. Cases were people with a validated diagnosis of VHD. Ten controls per case were matched on age, sex, and calendar year. Multivariable conditional logistic regression was used to estimate odds ratios (ORs) of VHD comparing patients ever treated with methylphenidate vs never users, as well as by time since last use, treatment duration, and variations in case inclusion criteria.

From a cohort of 1 596 284 patients, we identified 262 valid cases of VHD. No difference in the incidence of VHD was observed when comparing "ever users" of methylphenidate with "never users" (adjusted OR 0.52, 95%CI 0.16-1.69). A similar result was found comparing current, recent, or past users of methylphenidate. Differences were not significant when both valid and probable cases were included as events of interest (adjusted OR 0.59, 95%CI 0.22-1.63).

In this first-ever population-based study on this issue, association between methylphenidate and the incidence of VHD among persons in the 5 to 25 years age range was neither confirmed nor excluded. Additional studies may be required to clarify the presence or absence of this relationship.