Psychotropic Medication Use and Safety in U.S. Youth Researchers from the University of Pennsylvania’s Department of Biostatistics, Epidemiology, and Informatics (DBEI) examined national trends in psychotropic medication use among U.S. youth aged 6–24 years. The study was led by Epidemiology graduate student Lin-Chieh Meng, with faculty Charles Leonard, David Mandell, and Sean Hennessy contributing expertise in pharmacoepidemiology and mental health policy.
Using data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) from 2001 to early 2020, the team found that psychotropic medication use rose from about 5% to over 8%, with the largest increases among children and young adults. Stimulants, commonly prescribed for ADHD, nearly doubled in use. Antidepressant use remained stable, while antipsychotics and anti-anxiety drugs were less common but showed slight increases. Polypharmacy—the use of two or more psychotropic medications—also grew, especially among young adults.
Reported reasons for use generally aligned with clinical guidelines, but some off-label prescribing was noted, such as antipsychotics for ADHD in children. Alarmingly, about one in four youth taking psychotropic medications faced potential major drug-drug interactions, most often involving antipsychotics and antidepressants.
These findings underscore the need for careful monitoring, more research on long-term safety, and improved access to non-drug treatments to ensure safe and effective care.