What's New
Announcement
Posted on 04.30.02
UNC CERTs Finds that Psychotropic Drug Use In Children Is on the Rise
By Starr L. Nicely BS and Sue Tolleson-Rinehart, PhD
Doctors often rely on psychotropic drugs - drugs that can alter our minds and behaviors - to treat mental illnesses. But the increasing use of psychotropic drugs to treat children concerns many people. Attention Deficit-Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and depression are the most common illnesses for which doctors prescribe psychotropics in children.
ADHD and depression are hard to diagnose, yet doctors give these diagnoses more and more often. Earlier studies also have shown that psychotropic drug use in children is on the rise.
UNC CERTs investigators Drs. Deborah Shatin and Carol Drinkard confirmed this finding and provided additional information on psychotropic drug use in children. Dr. Shatin is the Senior Researcher and Dr. Drinkard is the Senior Research Analyst at UnitedHealth Group's Center for Health Care Policy and Evaluation.
Drs. Shatin and Drinkard looked at the pattern of psychotropic drug use in children in many different health plans from 1995 to 1999. They studied the four most common types of psychotropics used to treat ADHD or depression. These drug classes are central nervous system stimulants (CNSSs), selective serotonin-reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs), and other antidepressants (OADs). Their study told them several things.
First, they found that psychotropic drug use in children went up during this 5-year period. In general, the increase was the same for children who had different kinds of health insurance or who lived in different parts of the country. The study showed that the number of children receiving all but one of the kinds of drugs increased significantly. The use of TCAs, an older class of drug that is losing popularity, is on the decline.
Second, Drs. Shatin and Drinkard looked at the types of doctors who prescribe psychotropics for children. Pediatricians and family-practice physicians were more likely to prescribe antidepressants and CNSSs, whereas psychiatrists were more likely to prescribe SSRIs. Pediatricians, family-practice physicians, and psychiatrists prescribed TCAs equally.
This study justifies the concern about the increasing use of psychotropics in children. Drs. Shatin and Drinkard suggest that we should examine how mental illnesses are diagnosed in children. We should develop better guidelines for doctors to use when they believe their young patients may have a mental illness.
Their study was published in the March 2002 issue of Ambulatory Pediatrics:
Shatin D, Drinkard CR. Ambulatory use of psychotropics by employer-insured
children and adolescents in a national managed care organization. Ambul
Pediatr 2002;2(2):111-9. Abstract.