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Date: 2 August 2004 Location: From the media team of the Australian Psychological Society, Melbourne As concerns arise regarding the increasing trend to prescribe a variety of antidepressant drugs for children and adolescents who display evidence of depression and anxiety, the Australian Psychological Society (APS) is urging General Practitioners and parents to consider the benefits of psychological intervention. "There is little doubt that in certain cases the prescription of some antidepressants for children and adolescents is inappropriate and that psychological intervention is effective in treating these disorders without the need to medicate," says Dr Lyn Littlefield, APS Executive Director. Significant progress has been made in developing reliable and accurate methods for assessing childhood anxiety and depression. Furthermore, psychological programs incorporating cognitive-behavioural techniques have been shown to assist children and adolescents to develop skills for managing and overcoming anxiety and depression. Clinical practice guidelines recommend Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) as the treatment of first choice for children and adolescents because its efficacy is clearly supported by evidence from rigorous research. "Treatment for depressive disorders in children and adolescents should involve short-term psychological and targeted interventions involving the child, parent and school environment", says Dr Littlefield. "Because of the risk of side effects and misuse, the administration of medication to treat childhood disorders should be rated less favourably than psychological treatments such as cognitive behaviourable approaches which have been shown to be as effective, and in some instances more effective than drug treatment," according to Dr Littlefield. The APS agrees with AMA Vice President, Mukesh Haikerwal, that as the incidence and diagnosis of depression in young people grows, the treatment should notbe restricted to GPs and Psychiatrists. "Psychologists are trained practitioners in this area and their potential contribution needs to be recognised," Dr Littlefield says. <end> For more information on this topic contact: Elizabeth Benson-Stott 
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