Fluoxetine – do the benefits outweigh the risks in adolescent major depression?

Abstract

Major depressive disorder probably occurs in approximately 5% of adolescents. In these adolescents, selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors (SSRIs), other than fluoxetine, have shown limited benefit and may increase the risk of suicide. In the Treatment for Adolescents with Depression Study, treatment with fluoxetine of adolescents diagnosed with major depressive disorder, or with the combination of fluoxetine and cognitive behavioural therapy, was superior to placebo. Cognitive behavioural therapy alone was not shown to be superior to placebo. Of the patients in the study, 27% had at least minimal suicidal ideation at baseline, and this reduced to 9% at the end of the treatment period, with the reduction being similar in each of the treatment groups. There were more suicide-related adverse events in the patients treated with fluoxetine (15 of 216) than in patients not treated with fluoxetine (9 of 223). There were no actual suicides. Although further investigation of any association between fluoxetine and suicidal tendencies is clearly required, at present, fluoxetine is the only SSRI for which benefit has been clearly shown, and the benefits seem to outweigh the risks. Thus, fluoxetine should generally be the first choice drug of clinicians if they decide that antidepressant drug treatment is indicated in adolescents with major depressive disorder.