Antidepressant prescriptions for teenagers and young adults dramatically increased during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to new research published on Monday by the American Academy of Pediatrics.
The number of adolescents and young adults receiving antidepressant prescriptions was growing steadily before the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the study. Starting in March 2020, growth in the dispensing rate of antidepressants for young people under age 25 accelerated by nearly 64%.
The change was driven largely by girls and young women. Growth in the dispensing rate for females between the ages of 12 and 17 accelerated 130% after March 2020. For young women between the ages of 18 and 25, the corresponding number was 60%.
By contrast, the rate of antidepressant prescriptions for young adult males after March 2020 experienced no statistically significant change, while the rate for adolescent males decreased slightly.
The authors suspect, however, that this is not because mental health symptoms for males improved during the pandemic, as rates of emergency room visits for mental health concerns and suicide continued to increase.
The study’s lead author, University of Michigan professor of pediatric medicine Kao-Ping Chua, told CNN that he prescribed antidepressants “at rates that [he] never had before” during the pandemic.
“I can’t tell you how many pediatricians have told me that they feel like they’re just mental health clinicians at this point,” said Chua.
Other research studies since the start of the pandemic have demonstrated a similar trend in teenage girls, leading Chua and his colleagues to support the conclusion that “the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated a preexisting mental health crisis among female adolescents.”
The authors suggest several other possible causes, such as increased waitlists for psychotherapy treatments, which make pharmacological solutions a more practical alternative. Increased access to prescriptions via telehealth during the pandemic could also be a contributing factor.
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The Food and Drug Administration has a black box warning for teenagers and young adults up to age 24 for most antidepressants, as they may increase suicidal thoughts in younger patients. Black box warnings are the most severe warning for medications from the FDA.
“They’re not something you start trivially,” Chua said, advising parents to have frank conversations with their children about mental health before making these changes.
