Should antidepressant drugs be banned in children?

European and US pharmaceutical agencies have recently warned against the use of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) in child and adolescent depression. This came as a surprise to many practitioners, who had made treatment decisions based on data from pharmaceutical trials using adult samples. The author reviews the recent literature relevant to the use of SSRIs in youth depression, including psychiatric clinical trials, pharmacology and drug safety data.

Recommendations and rationales for the use of SSRIs in this context are offered. Ten publications, comprising a total of 2,046 patients, evaluated the efficacy of four SSRIs (fluoxetine, paroxetine, sertraline and citalopram) in child and adolescent depression. It is noted that an additional 6 trials (with a total of 1,234 patients) were not reported by the industry because of a lack of efficacy or problematic side effects, including suicidal behaviors. Meta-analyses revealed no data supporting the use of SSRIs, except for fluoxetine.

To formulate recommendations for clinical practice, it is necessary to examine specific issues such as (1) the link between SSRIs, depression and suicidal risk; (2) SSRI age-related specific effects, and (3) the high placebo response in child and adolescent depression. An SSRI prescription is still a second-line option in severe and resistant forms of youth depression. However, in children and adolescents only specialists well trained in child and adolescent psychiatry should prescribe SSRIs.