More than 389,000 children and teenagers were treated with Risperdal—an atypical antipsychotic—last year. And, 240,000 of them were 12 years old or younger, the November 18th New York Times reports. A panel of federal drug experts stated that medications like Risperdal are ” being used far too cavalierly in children” and that “federal drug regulators must do more to warn doctors of their substantial risks.”
Risperdal has been approved for treating irritability in autistic children. The New York Times notes that “in many cases, the drug was prescribed to treat attention deficit disorders,” for which it has not been approved …read more