Health Canada to review use of psychiatric drugs on kids - 12.15.03

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Health Canada to review use of psychiatric drugs on kids Last Updated Mon Dec 15 11:13:18 2003

HALIFAX-- Health Canada is reviewing whether a class of drugs - known as SSRIs - is safe for the treatment of depression in children and adolescents. The review is looking at data on many of the top-selling psychiatric drugs, including Paxil, Prozac and Celexa. None of the drugs is licensed for use in children, but doctors often do still prescribe them. Word of the review follows two Health Canada warnings. In July, the agency cautioned that children and teens taking Paxil could be at a higher risk for suicidal thoughts. In September, it issued a similar warning about Effexor.

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Reynolds of Health Canada's therapeutic products directorate, says the department is taking a closer look at all selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors, or SSRIs. "We're looking at the risk of suicide-related events in children and adolescents under the age of 18." Earlier this week, the drug regulator in the U.K. warned that with the exception of Prozac, the risks of SSRIs outweigh the potential benefits for children and teens, and should not be prescribed for them. In the U.S., the Food and Drug Administration has scheduled a review of SSRI safety in children and adolescents for early in the new year. The Therapeutics Initiative at the University of British Columbia does independent evaluations of drugs. The organization notes that the actions by the three governments is important because more children are taking SSRIs. "It's something for physicians to be cautious about and I would hope that the regulators in each of those countries would share their information," the Initiative's Dr. Jim said. added that sharing data would lead to faster conclusions, something that could save lives, if the review turns up problems with SSRIs in children.