Concerta: how does it work?

Factual Questions
1

My 9 year old son’s doctor just switched him from twice- daily Ritalin to once-a-day Concerta. We noticed the difference right away. With the Ritalin you could tell when the drug was wearing off, especially in the late afternoon/evening hours. But with Concerta, it’s obvious that the medication is working all the way up until bedtime.

How does Concerta stay in your system all day long? What are the “mechanics” that make this pill work like that?

2

Here ya go. The active ingredient is still methylphenidate, but it’s held in a different matrix than with Ritalin. The methylphenidate is released more slowly and evenly, causing less of a crash-and-burn problem as it wears off.

Hey, it works better for my kid, too. YMMV of course.