Performance enhancing, non-prescription use of Ritalin: a comparison with amphetamines and cocaine.

Ritalin, known under chemical name methylphenidate (MPH), is a psychostimulant prescribed to treat attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and other conditions. Psychotropic effects and pharmacological pathways evoked by MPH are similar, but not identical to those produced by amphetamines and cocaine. Although not completely understood in detail, MPH psychostimulation is mediated by the increase of central dopamine (DA) and possibly norepinephrine (NE) and serotonin (ST) due to decrease of their re-uptake via binding to and inhibition of DA, NE, and ST transporters.