[Use of psychotropic drugs in children]

Abstract

The need for specific psychopharmacology trials in the pediatric population has been recognized and promoted by clinicians and regulatory instances. There are indeed specificities in symptom expression and pharmacological characteristics in this population, and recent studies showed that extrapolation from adult data is not always possible. Available results are insufficient to provide effective guidance for prescription and long-term evaluation of risk/benefit ratio in most indications. The aim of this article is to give an overview of efficacy and safety data in pediatric psychopharmacology.