The data supporting the use of "antidepressants" in children and adolescents is largely unavailable. Academic publications give a different picture as regards benefits and harms to publications from regulatory other sources. Despite disagreements about the data driving use of these medicines, in practice "antidepressants" may now be the most commonly used drugs by adolescent girls, and children's mental health services are attracting increasing attention.This paper reviews the difficulties surrounding the data. It outlines a case for benefits (as well as risks) that would require physicians to exert a greater degree of professional autonomy than service managers might wish.
Keywords: Antidepressants; RCTs; SSRIs; anxiolytic; depression.