Increased Antidepressant Prescriptions for Children and Adolescents with Major Depressive Disorder in Japan Based on a Claims Database

The rate of child and adolescent patients prescribed antidepressants increased, while the antidepressant prescription rate among child and adolescent patients with MDD declined, indicating that Japanese physicians have become more cautious about the use of antidepressants. It is critical to generate new clinical data on the efficacy and safety of antidepressants for Japanese child and adolescent patients with MDD and to consider the development of additional pediatric indications for antidepressant therapy.