Selected publications and commentary

Research in psychiatric epidemiology, substance use, medication safety, and clinical informatics.

Publication records

PubMed author search · Google Scholar profile and citation metrics · Curriculum vitae

Recent Publications (2025-2026)

Cannabis Use Among US Adolescents

Sultan RS, Zhang AW, Becker TD, Sethaputra P, Simon KM, Huang Y, Levin FR, Levy S, Olfson M.
Pediatrics. 2026;157(1):e2024070509.
DOI: 10.1542/peds.2024-070509 | [PDF]

Cross-sectional analysis of 162,532 respondents in the 2018–2022 Monitoring the Future surveys. Cannabis-use frequency was associated with academic and emotional functioning, including among monthly users. The study does not establish causal relationships.

Protective Effects of ADHD Medication on Real-World Outcomes

Sultan RS, Saunders DC, Veenstra-VanderWeele J.
JAMA Psychiatry. 2025;82(8):757–758. Invited editorial.
DOI: 10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2025.0918 | [PDF]

Commentary on registry research by Li and colleagues examining ADHD medication and real-world outcomes. Discusses how associations may change as prescribing broadens and the importance of daily functioning alongside severe adverse outcomes.

Labeling of Cannabis Products from Licensed and Unlicensed Retailers

Labeling of Cannabis Products from Licensed and Unlicensed Retailers in New York City
Becker TD, Menzi P, Sultan RS.
American Journal of Preventive Medicine. 2025.
Part of the CASNY Study

Analysis of 88 cannabis products from licensed and unlicensed NYC retailers. Found that unlicensed products were less likely to include essential consumer information (THC potency, standard dose, expiration date), safety warnings ("Keep Away from Children," poison control), and more likely to feature child-oriented packaging elements. Part of the CASNY multi-phase study.

MIND: AI Dashboard for Mental Health Clinicians (CHI 2026)

MIND: Empowering Mental Health Clinicians with Multimodal Data Insights through a Narrative Dashboard
Zou R, Xu S, Morris ME, Ryu J, Becker TD, Allen N, Albano AM, Auerbach R, Adler D, Mishra V, Padilla L, Wang D, Sultan R, Xu X.
Proceedings of the 2026 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems.
ACM publication · Author manuscript

A study of a narrative dashboard that combines clinical information and patient-generated data. Co-design involved five clinicians, followed by an evaluation with 16 clinicians. The reported outcomes concern clinicians’ assessments of the dashboard, rather than demonstrated patient benefit.

Selected Publications

Antipsychotic prescribing in youth with ADHD

Antipsychotic Treatment Among Youths With Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder
Sultan RS, Wang S, Crystal S, Olfson M.
JAMA Network Open. 2019;2(7):e197850.
DOI: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2019.7850 | [PDF]

Among 187,563 youths newly diagnosed with ADHD, 2.6% received an antipsychotic within a year. Of those starting an antipsychotic, 47.9% had not received a stimulant between ADHD diagnosis and antipsychotic initiation. The diagnosis analysis included both FDA-indicated conditions and evidence-supported disruptive-behavior diagnoses.

Cannabis Access by Retailer Type in New York City

Becker T, Olfson M, Menzi P, Levin F, Hasin D, Nuckolls C, Sultan RS.
Pediatrics. 2025.
Part of the CASNY Study | [PDF]

Secret shopper study of 37 cannabis outlets across NYC. All licensed dispensaries verified customer age (100%) vs. only 10% of unlicensed outlets. Unlicensed retailers sold cheaper products, used youth-friendly marketing, and operated alongside candy and energy drink sales.

Nondisordered Cannabis Use Among U.S. Adolescents

Sultan RS, Zhang AW, Olfson M, Kwizera MH, Levin FR.
JAMA Network Open. 2023;6(5):e2311294.
DOI: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2023.11294 | [PDF]

A study of adolescent cannabis use below the diagnostic threshold for cannabis use disorder and its associations with mental health, cognitive, behavioral, academic, and legal outcomes.

Clozapine Policy Research

Evaluating the Effect of Changes in FDA Guidelines for Clozapine Monitoring
Sultan RS, Olfson M, Correll CU, Duncan EJ.
Journal of Clinical Psychiatry. 2017;78(8):e933-e939.
DOI: 10.4088/JCP.16m11152 | [PDF]

Evaluates how revised FDA monitoring thresholds would affect the proportion of patients meeting criteria for clozapine-related treatment interruption.

Adolescents with ADHD: Adverse Behaviors and Comorbidity

Adolescents with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: Adverse Behaviors and Comorbidity
Sultan RS, Liu SM, Hacker KA, Olfson M.
Journal of Adolescent Health. 2021;68(2):284-291. | [PDF]

Using the National Comorbidity Survey Adolescent Supplement (NCS-A), examined 6,483 youth ages 14-18. Found significantly elevated risks for suicide attempts (aOR 2.9), physical aggression (aOR 2.3), and school expulsion/job termination (aOR 3.3) among adolescents with ADHD.

Neuroscience-Based Nomenclature in Pediatric Psychopharmacology

What's in a Name? Moving to Neuroscience-Based Nomenclature in Pediatric Psychopharmacology
Sultan RS, Correll CU, Zohar J, Zalsman G, Veenstra-VanderWeele J.
Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. 2018;57(10). DOI: 10.1016/j.jaac.2018.05.024 | [PDF]

Pre-ECT Ketamine Infusion in Treatment-Resistant Depression

Beneficial Pre-ECT Ketamine Infusion in a Patient with Treatment-Resistant Depression
Sultan R, Riva-Posse P, Garlow SJ, Schwartz AC.
Psychosomatics. 2014;55(4):396-399.
DOI: 10.1016/j.psym.2013.12.002 | PMID: 24735865

A case report describing ketamine infusion before electroconvulsive therapy in a patient with treatment-resistant depression.