The effect(s) of medication on language in Attention Deficit-Hyperactivity Disorder: A scoping review protocol
Authors: Maras Luke , Hill Elizabeth 
Published: May 2024

Objective: The objective of this review is to map existing literature to identify and describe the effect(s) of medication on language skills in the context of ADHD, as well as gaps in existing literature to inform avenues for future research. Introduction: ADHD is a highly prevalent neurobehavioural disorder marked by difficulties with impulsivity, hyperactivity, and/or inattentiveness. Cognitive characteristics of ADHD frequently co-occur with language and communication differences, which can impact participation in daily social, academic, and vocational pursuits. Pharmacological intervention is the first-line treatment for ADHD symptomology; with evidence supporting the positive effect of medication on functional outcomes. Medication may also have beneficial effects on language, however, to date, there has been no review of the effect(s) of medication on language outcomes amongst children and adults with ADHD. Consequently, this review aims to identify and describe the characteristics and key findings of studies that have investigated the effect of ADHD medication on language performance. Eligibility criteria: This review will consider qualitative and quantitative studies published in English; peer-reviewed published literature and dissertations/theses. The review will consider sources comprising participants with a confirmed diagnosis of ADHD. No limits will be placed on the age of participants. The review will consider sources that have explicitly measured at least one language construct (any modality) and investigated the effect of medication on the language construct of interest. This review will exclude non-English studies, reviews, books, protocols, and theoretical or opinion pieces. No limits will be set on time or place of publication. Methods: This review will be informed by the JBI guidelines and commence in April 2024. The following databases will be searched: ProQuest, PsycInfo, Medline, and Scopus, and results will be imported into Covidence for review. Two reviewers will independently screen all identified studies using the protocol eligibility criteria. Results will be screened by title and abstract followed by full-text review. Any disagreements will be resolved by discussion between the two reviewers, with a third party to be involved when an agreement cannot be reached. Two independent reviewers will extract data from all included articles. Results / Conclusion: The review will outline key findings of the included papers as well as gaps in the current literature and salient directions for future research. Specifically, the review will identify and describe (a) language constructs that have been investigated, (b) medication types, (c) participant characteristics (e.g., age, sex/gender, ADHD subtype), (d) study characteristics (e.g., design), and (e) key outcomes related to the effect(s) of medication on language skills. The outcomes of this review will be disseminated via publication and plain language summaries. The outcomes may also inform conference presentations relevant to language and communication in ADHD.