The percentage of American children 2-5 years old using antipsychotic medication doubled between 1999 and 2007.
Researchers examined pharmacy claim data from more than 150 employers. Participants were all privately insured children aged 2 to 5 years old who had 12 months of continuous coverage in 1999-2001 (N=400,196) or 2007 (N=755,793). In this privately insured population of children, the annual rate of antipsychotic medication approximately doubled between 1999-2001 and 2007.
Annual rates of antipsychotic use per 1,000 privately insured young children by age and sex.
From the source:
“Despite increasing rates of antipsychotic drug use by very young children, provision of formal mental health services remain sparse. Fewer than one-half of antipsychotic-treated young children received a mental health assessment (40.8%), a psychotherapy visit (41.4%), or a visit with a psychiatrist (42.6%) during the year of antipsychotic use.”
Tags:
Antipsychotic medication, Children’s mental health
Citation:
Olfson M, Crystal S, Huang C, Gerhard T. Trends in antipsychotic drug use by very young, privately insured children. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2010; 49(1):13-23.
