Teenagers and young adults are twice as likely to hurt themselves or attempt suicide when taking high doses of antidepressant medication. That is the conclusion of a study of more than 160,000 patients under the age of 24. Harvard researchers compared standard doses of SSRI-type antidepressants such as Celexa, Prozac and Zoloft with higher doses of the same drugs. The greater the dose, the more likely the youngsters were to harm themselves.
This isn’t the first time that antidepressant medications have been linked to suicidal thoughts or behaviors. Although it seems counterintuitive, such medicines have been associated with an increased risk of suicidal behavior in other studies. Five years ago, one meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials showed that young adults were twice as likely to attempt suicide if they were taking an antidepressant than if they were taking a placebo.
The authors of the study concluded that adolescents should not be prescribed high doses of SSRI antidepressants and that they should be monitored carefully. Parents may want to seek out counseling such as cognitive behavioral therapy if it is available for their depressed youngsters.
[JAMA Internal Medicine, online April 28, 2014; BMJ, Aug. 2009]
The lead author of the current study answered questions about it here. There is more information on cognitive behavioral therapy in this one-hour interview with psychologist Reid Wilson, PhD.
