Depression Drugs For Kids: How Safe?

Doctors are more divided than ever over the safety of prescribing antidepressant drugs — Prozac, Paxil and Zoloft and other so-called selective serotonin-reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs)--to depressed children and teens. British health-care officials last month warned doctors against giving any SSRI but Prozac to kids, citing studies that suggest the drugs may trigger suicidal behavior. The FDA issued a similar warning against Paxil but held off on the other SSRIs pending further study. Now an American College of Neuropsychopharmacology task force, having reviewed the data, says the link to suicide is weak and that the drugs' benefits outweigh the risks. The FDA plans to revisit the issue next month.