Do the latest medications for depression work for kids and teens?

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2021-05-27 09:02

Australia; New Zealand; International

The newer generation of antidepressants appears to reduce depression symptoms in children and teens diagnosed with major depression disorder by a "small and unimportant" amount compared to placebo, according to a meta-analysis of 26 research studies. The authors say their findings reflect what happens on average to individuals, so its possible some youth may experience a greater response. They also say some of the studies they looked at excluded young people at risk of suicide, so they can't be confident about the effects of these medications for these individuals.

Journal/
conference: Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews

Research:Paper

Organisation/s: University of Auckland, Monash University, The University of Melbourne, University of York (UK)

Funder: External sources of funding: Auckland Medical Research Foundation, New Zealand SH salary is supported by a Douglas Goodfellow Repatriation Grant A Better Start, National Science Challenge, Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment, New Zealand SH salary is support by A Better Start, National Science Challenge (UOAX1901) Cure Kids, New Zealand SH salary is supported by Cure Kids and SM holds the Cure Kids Duke Family Chair in Child and Adolescent Mental Health National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC), Australia JM is supported by a NHMRC Career Development Fellowship (1143429) National Institute for Health Research (NIHR), UK NM contribution to this review is supported by Cochrane Infrastructure funding to the Common Mental Disorders Cochrane Review Group

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