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Studies Antidepressants do not bring clear benefits to children
For some time there has been some debate as to whether the currently available antidepressants can really help children with severe mental health problems. Researchers now found that out of fourteen antidepressants tested, only one agent was more effective than traditional placebos at relieving severe depression in children.
The effectiveness of some medications can be argued. This is also the case with antidepressants for children, for example. Doctors have long doubted that these drugs are really helpful in the treatment of children. Scientists from the internationally acclaimed Oxford University have now found in one study that in fact, out of fourteen antidepressants tested, only one agent was truly effective. The experts issued a press release on their study results and also published them in the journal The Lancet.
When children suffer from depression, they urgently need help. Unfortunately, scientists now find that almost all childhood depression medicines have little healing effect. (Image: Brian Jackson / fotolia.com) Out of fourteen drugs, only one was classified as effective
When children suffer from severe depression, they urgently need professional help. Therapies and medicines are actually intended to help affected adolescents to better control their illness or even defeat it. Unfortunately, many medications do not seem to be really effective. Out of fourteen tested antidepressants
Only one drug could be considered helpful, say the scientists. The remaining thirteen drugs were no more effective than placebo administered. One of these drugs (venlafaxine) has even been linked to an increased risk of suicide attempts, say the authors. The suicidal risk of children increases strongly with antidepressants, as previously reported in another study.
Many studies are poorly built or funded by pharmaceutical companies
So far it has been unclear whether antidepressants are really effective in children and adolescents. The actual efficacy and safety of antidepressants in children and adolescents has not been clarified because most studies on this topic are poorly structured. There is also selective coverage of research, mostly funded by pharmaceutical companies, the authors emphasize. Accurate monitoring of young people taking antidepressants is needed, regardless of what medications they take. Especially at the beginning of treatment, the effects of the drugs should be closely monitored, the researchers advise.
Three percent of children under the age of twelve suffer from depression
Reviewing the risks and benefits of antidepressants for the treatment of major depression does not seem to offer a clear advantage in children and adolescents. Fluoxetine could be the only exception, explains author Professor Peng Xie. Depression affects about three percent of children between the ages of six and 12 years. For adolescents aged 13 to 18, the figure is even six percent, explains the physician.
Number of children taking antidepressants is growing
The number of young people taking antidepressants increased massively between 2005 and 2012, both in the US and in the UK. In the UK, the proportion of children and adolescents taking antidepressants has risen from 0.7 percent to 1.1 percent, say the experts.
A drug increases the risk of suicide attempts
For their study, the researchers analyzed the data from 34 studies with 5260 participants. These had an average age of nine to 18 years, explain the researchers. Only fluoxetine showed real benefits in terms of efficacy and tolerability. The drug nortriptyline was less effective than seven other medications and placebo, imipramine, venlafaxine and duloxetine were all very poorly tolerated. Venlafaxine has even been associated with an increased risk of suicide attempts or suicidal thoughts compared to placebo and five other drugs, the authors warn.
There is a lack of reliable data on this topic
Due to a lack of reliable data, it was not possible to conduct a comprehensive analysis of suicide risk for all medicines. Pharmaceutical companies funded 65 percent of all studies, say the doctors. Ten studies appeared to be at high risk of partiality, while twenty others were rated as "moderate". The British main author Dr. Andrea Cipriani of Oxford University says: "Without access to individual data, it is difficult to get accurate estimates of how it works. (As)