Neuroleptics for Children: Harvard's Shame
In December 2012, Mark Olfson, MD, et al, published an article in the Archives of General Psychiatry. The title is National Trends in the Office-Based Treatment of Children, Adolescents, and Adults with Antipsychotics. The authors collected data from the National Ambulatory Medical Care Surveys for the period 1993-2009, and looked for trends in antipsychotic prescribing for children, adolescents, and adults in outpatient visits. Here are the results: Age Increase in no. of antipsychotic prescriptions per 100 population (1993-2009) 0-13 0.24-1.83 (almost 8-fold) 14-20 0.78-3.76 (almost 5-fold) 21+ 3.25-6.18 (almost 2-fold) The authors provide a breakdown of the diagnoses assigned to the children and adolescents during the antipsychotic visits. ...