Child warning on anti-depressants
The majority of the most commonly prescribed type of anti-depressants should not be given to people under 18, the UK's Committee on Safety of Medicines has decided, following a review by medical experts.
The majority of the most commonly prescribed type of anti-depressants should not be given to people under 18, the UK's Committee on Safety of Medicines has decided, following a review by medical experts.
A medical committee was set up to look at the safety of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) after concerns that they made some patients suicidal, and it found the risks of certain SSRIs outweighed the benefits of treatment.
The expert group found there is no, or insufficient, evidence from clinical trials that benefits outweigh the risks of side effects for sertraline (Lustral), citalopram (Cipramil), escitalopram (Cipralex) or fluvoxamine (Faverin). However, they recommended that fluoxetine (Prozac) should continue to be prescribed for people under 18. It was the only drug that had clearly demonstrated that the benefits outweighed the risks.
Professor Ian Weller, chairman of the working group, commented: 'The evidence is that the drugs either don't work, or work only poorly, and that there are a large number of side effects such as headache, shaky hands, agitation, loss of appetite and loss of weight.'
It is estimated that up to 40,000 children and teenagers are prescribed SSRIs across the UK. About half of those are treated with Prozac.
In June, a warning was issued about the use of paroxetine (Seroxat) in children under the age of 18, and further advice was given in September about the use of venflaxine (Efexor). The latest advice completes the advice on the remaining five SSRIs.
The Committee on Safety of Medicines pointed out that, like Seroxat and Efexor, none of the drugs considered by the expert group had ever been licensed for use in those under 18.