<p>
	Most available antidepressants do not help children and teenagers with serious mental health problems and some may be unsafe, experts have warned.</p>
<p>
	&nbsp;</p>
<p>
	A review of clinical trial evidence found that of 14 antidepressant drugs only one, fluoxetine &ndash; marketed as Prozac &ndash; was better than a &ldquo;dummy&rdquo; placebo at relieving the symptoms of young people with major depression.</p>
<p>
	&nbsp;</p>
<p>
	The researchers conducted a systematic review of all published and unpublished trials looking at the effects of 14 antidepressants in young people with major depression up to the end of May 2015.</p>
<p>
	&nbsp;</p>
<p>
	Analysis of 34 trials involving 5,260 participants aged nine to 18 found that only in the case of fluoxetine did benefits outweigh risks in terms of efficacy and tolerability.</p>
<p>
	&nbsp;</p>
<p>
	Nortriptyline was less effective than seven other drugs and placebo, while imipramine, venlafaxine and duloxetine were the least well tolerated.</p>
<p>
	&nbsp;</p>
<p>
	Compared with placebo and five other drugs, venlafaxine was linked to an increased risk of suicidal attempts or thoughts.</p>
<p>
	&nbsp;</p>
<p>
	But the authors, writing in The Lancet medical journal, stressed that the true effectiveness, safety and &ldquo;suicidility risk&rdquo; of antidepressants taken by children and teenagers remained unclear because of a lack of reliable data.</p>
<p>
	&nbsp;</p>
<p>
	Pharmaceutical companies funded 65% of the trials and 10 were judged to have shown a high risk of bias. The overall quality of evidence for primary outcomes was &ldquo;very low&rdquo;, the researchers concluded.</p>
<p>
	&nbsp;</p>
<p>
	They recommended close monitoring of young people on antidepressants, regardless of what drugs they were prescribed, especially at the start of treatment.</p>
<p>
	&nbsp;</p>
<p>
	Major depressive disorder affects around 3% of children aged six to 12 and 6% of teenagers aged 13 to 18.</p>
<p>
	&nbsp;</p>
<p>
	In 2004 the US Food and Drug Administration issued a warning against the use of antidepressants in young people up to the age of 24 because of concerns about suicide risk &ndash; yet the number of young people taking the drugs increased between 2005 and 2012.</p>
<p>
	&nbsp;</p>
<p>
	In the UK, the proportion of children and teenagers aged 19 and under taking antidepressants rose from 0.7% to 1.1%.</p>
<p>
	&nbsp;</p>
<p>
	(Published by the Irish Examiner on the 9th June 2016)</p>
<p>
	<a href="http://www.irishexaminer.com/examviral/science-world/most-antidepressants-arent-helping-young-people-with-their-mental-health-say-experts-403967.html">http://www.irishexaminer.com/examviral/science-world/most-antidepressants-arent-helping-young-people-with-their-mental-health-say-experts-403967.html</a></p>
