Results There is some evidence of the effectiveness of medication in treating DBDs , with positive outcomes for lithium and risperidone in particular .
Pharmacotherapy also demonstrated some efficacy in reducing symptoms of aggression .
Medication was relatively well-tolerated , as indicated by equivalent dropout rates in medication and comparison groups .
Rationale Pharmacotherapy is frequently considered in the treatment of  disruptive behavior disorders ( DBDs ) in children and adolescents .
There are , however , no systematic review s of this literature .
Objectives The aim of this work is to determine whether medication is effective in treating pediatric disruptive behavior disorders and related problems of impulse control , as well as to examine differences in the treatment response and tolerability of different medication classes and agents .
A double-blind pilot study of risperidone in the treatment of conduct disorder.
OBJECTIVE To examine whether risperidone is superior to placebo in the treatment of youths with conduct disorder . METHOD This was a 10-week , r and omized , double-blind , placebo-controlled study with 2 parallel arms . Ten youths were r and omly assigned to receive placebo and 10 youths were r and omly assigned to receive risperidone .  Patients were seen weekly throughout the trial . Medications could be increased at weekly intervals during the first 6 weeks of the study from an initial dose of 0.25 mg or 0.50 mg each morning , depending on patient weight . Patients weighing less than 50 kg had a maximum total daily dose of risperidone of 1.5 mg . Patients weighing 50 kg or greater had a maximum total daily dose of risperidone of 3.0 mg . The primary outcome measure was the Rating of Aggression Against People and /or Property Scale . RESULTS Risperidone was superior to placebo in ameliorating aggression on most measures . Risperidone was reasonably well tolerated , with none of the risperidone-treated patients developing extrapyramidal side effects . CONCLUSIONS These data provide preliminary evidence that risperidone may have efficacy in the treatment of youths with conduct disorder . Because of the small sample size and the brief length of this study , further research is necessary to confirm these findings
Results There is some evidence of the effectiveness of medication in treating DBDs , with positive outcomes for lithium and risperidone in particular .
Pharmacotherapy also demonstrated some efficacy in reducing symptoms of aggression .
Medication was relatively well-tolerated , as indicated by equivalent dropout rates in medication and comparison groups .
Rationale Pharmacotherapy is frequently considered in the treatment of  disruptive behavior disorders ( DBDs ) in children and adolescents .
There are , however , no systematic review s of this literature .
Objectives The aim of this work is to determine whether medication is effective in treating pediatric disruptive behavior disorders and related problems of impulse control , as well as to examine differences in the treatment response and tolerability of different medication classes and agents .