Barbara Wagner a Henderson resident, who was diagnosed with ADHD in her 60s, said the mobile game EndeavorOTC has helped her manage the conditions symptoms that often interfere with her everyday life. June 19, 2023. Brian Ramos
Tuesday, July 4, 2023 | 2 a.m.
Barbara Wagner wouldn’t call herself a gamer, but the 70-year-old woman makes sure to open up her EndeavorOTC application almost every day.
The Henderson resident, who was diagnosed with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder — commonly known as ADHD — in her 60s, said the mobile game has helped her manage the condition’s symptoms that often interfere with her everyday life.
“I was always anti-game. I just thought it would get my heart going, it would exacerbate it, it would stimulate me too much,” Wagner said. “But if you have ADHD, this is hitting the right place in the brain for focus and, as I’m doing it, the longer the games get, and the more difficult they get, I noticed that I can almost feel it in my brain.”
Something as simple as leading a virtual character through an obstacle-riddled racetrack has helped her better than any medication has, she said, and the game’s developers are hoping more adults with ADHD can experience the same benefits.
EndeavorOTC — short for over the counter — is a video game application “clinically designed to treat and improve ADHD symptoms for adults,” according to Akili, the company behind the game.
People can download the app for free from Apple’s app store. There are plans for an app for Android devices.
The app was created using a similar system as EndeavorRx, Akili’s FDA-authorized prescription video game treatment for children with ADHD.
Dr. Scott Kollins, Akili’s chief medical officer, said that — contrary to popular belief — video games can “be highly effective for treating cognitive conditions, including inattention,” when designed as a medical treatment.
“It is true that some video games may worsen attention, and research studying the impact of screen time is ongoing, (but) context is critical when evaluating video games and not all screen time is the same,” said Dr. Ann Childress, president of the Center for Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine, who worked with Akili on both of its app studies.
Using the EndeavorRx technology gave Kollins and the Akili team a “strong foundation to work with” for adults, and they saw seven times greater improvements in attention with EndeavorOTC than EndeavorRx’s original FDA authorization, he said.
Often beginning in childhood, ADHD is “a common condition marked by excessive levels of inattention, hyperactivity and impulsivity for stage of development,” Childress said.
It can last throughout a person’s entire life, later affecting their ability to remember important details, maintain relationships and manage their time. For Wagner, the condition became alienating and she became ashamed of that part of her, she said.
Wagner said she had been experiencing symptoms of ADHD since she was a kid— like talking in class and having trouble focusing on schoolwork. It wasn’t until shortly after she retired from her career as a property manager that she finally was diagnosed.
“I noticed that I was just looking for something to do around the house, I was fidgeting, and I wasn’t ever completing anything … so went to the doctor,” Wagner said. “He looked at me after the test, and he said, I cannot believe you’ve made it to age 68 without being diagnosed with ADHD.”
There is no cure for the condition or its symptoms, but those with ADHD can manage them through medications — such as Adderall — or other ways that help with increasing the person’s ability to focus, Childress said.
The idea behind EndeavorOTC is for users to improve their focus by targeting specific items in the game, avoiding obstacles on a set course and multitasking to complete different goals that exercise the brain. Kollins said that playing the game helps patients “practice” how to focus and retain that behavior.
“Our brains have an incredible ability to change and grow — what we call neuroplasticity. With enough practice, we can train our brains to reshape themselves,” Kollins said. “Improving specific cognitive functions, like focus, operates on the same principle as learning a new language or instrument — the more we practice, the better equipped our brains will be to retain specific habits.”
Wagner said that although she takes a low dose of Adderall, playing EndeavorOTC has had the same effectiveness without the negative side effects, a remedy she’s been looking for as she ages.
So when a call for trial participants in a study on ADHD medication alternatives appeared on Wagner’s Facebook feed, she didn’t hesitate to volunteer.
Wagner contacted the local Akili team and, after a 2 1/2-hour interview with different focus-based tests, she was sent home with a tablet as one of the first trial participants.
She was directed to play it for 25 minutes a day at least five days a week. After only two weeks, Wagner and her husband, Gary, already started to notice a difference in her behavior.
“I said, it’s only been two weeks, just keep going with this and see; sure enough, at the end of the six weeks, I just felt wonderful,” Wagner said.
Childress even told Wagner when she went in for focus tests after the trial period that her focus had improved by around 73%. The results of Wagner’s game play would last for six to twelve months, Childress said.
In their clinical trials, almost 73% of their participants were able to see “quality of life improvements,” with 60% being better able to complete projects on time and 53% improving their ability to multitask, Akili said.
While EndeavorOTC has yet to be authorized by the FDA, Childress said this app could at least spur adults who think they might have ADHD to get a diagnosis or help those with ADHD that aren’t receiving treatment for their symptoms.
Wagner added that it is much more affordable than medication, comes with no side effects and remains accessible — especially in light of the Adderall shortages that have plagued the U.S. since last year.
After her own successes with EndeavorOTC, Wagner said she’s going to do all she can to spread the word about the app and its benefits. She’s even talking with one of her daughters about introducing her granddaughter, who also has ADHD, to the technology.
“That’s my only hope, is that something as simple as this can help the world without the drugs,” Wagner said. “If the doctor could offer this, with no side effects, most people I know would give it a try, (so) I think this game is of great benefit to society.”
