Psychotropic medications for highly vulnerable children.

Psychotropic medications for highly vulnerable children. Expert Opin Pharmacother. 2018 Apr;19(6):547-560 Authors: McLaren JL, Barnett ER, Concepcion Zayas MT, Lichtenstein J, Acquilano SC, Schwartz LM, Woloshin S, Drake RE Abstract INTRODUCTION: At least 20% of children in the U.S. are highly vulnerable because they lack healthcare and protection. Several factors produce vulnerability: trauma, disruptions of parenting, poverty, involvement in the juvenile justice and/or child welfare systems, residence in restrictive settings, and problems related to developmental disabilities. These children receive psychotropic medications at high rates, raising numerous concerns. Areas covered: The authors begin this review with a description of the population of highly vulnerable children. They then follow this with a review of the effectiveness and side effects of psychotropic medications for their most common diagnoses, using the highest-quality systematic reviews identified by multiple database searches. Expert opinion: Highly vulnerable children receive numerous psychotropic medications with high rates of polypharmacy, off-label use, and long-term use, typically in the absence of adjunctive psychosocial interventions. The current evidence contravenes these trends. Future studies of psychotropic medications in vulnerable children should include long-term effectiveness trials and polypharmacy in conjunction with evidence-based, family-centered...
Source: Expert Opinion on Pharmacotherapy - Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Tags: Expert Opin Pharmacother Source Type: research