Uso indevido de metilfenidato por universitários para aprimoramento cognitivo: uma revisão bibliográfica

Methylphenidate is widely used in the treatment of ADHD, however in recent years the number of cases of patients who use it inappropriately has increased. Given this scenario, the main goal of this study is to review the misuse of methylphenidate by university students for cognitive enhancement. Thus, an integrative literature review was carried out using two databases (PubMed and Science Direct), including all articles published between 2011 and 2021, written in English or Portuguese. The keywords used for the research were “Methylphenidate” and “Cognition” and “Students"and “Medical Students”. A total of 420 articles were found, of which 49 were available for free, and of these, 23 articles were included in the study after being previously analyzed. At the end of this process the estimated prevalence of the use of psychostimulants for cognitive enhancement varies according to the studies, however it was possible to observe that when analyzing students from the health areas, the prevalence is almost two times higher if compared to students in general. It was possible to observe a higher prevalence among mens, especially among young people aged 18 to 25 years. The main reasons reported for using this medication were to improve academic performance, increased attention, concentration and alertness. The misuse of methylphenidate has become increasingly prevalent among college students for cognitive enhancement, and the potential benefits and harms of using this drug in healthy individuals are still controversial, so further studies on the subject are needed.