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  • AADD Moderators: swilow | Vagabond696

Is what my doctor did legal?

Mr Blonde

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Oct 1, 2006
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I'm 17 years old, and when I was 16 I was put on Zoloft. I went to see the doctor because of depression, and with the use of the SSRI and therapy I'm perfectly healthy now and love life again!

But, I read in the Australian the other day that Zoloft is not allowed to be given to people under 18 who suffer depression. It's only indicated for anxiety disorders in minors. And, now that I think back to when I was Rx'd the SSRI, I was telling my doctor I was depressed and yet he was writing down social anxiety on his computer.

Basically, it looks like he did a bit of a run around in order to get me on the Zoloft. Which I am thankful for, I believed it saved my life. But is this legal?

n.b. - I don't plan to hold this against my doc or anything, I'm just curious.
 
I'm pretty sure its "not recommended" rather than actually illegal.
 
Just guessing but maybe your doctor took the "liberty" of describing/diagnosing your condition as an anxiety disorder rather than depression. Id say the two are linked either way. Anyhow by the sounds of things he did the right thing by you.
 
I've seen a 15 year old girl put on Zoloft, then Luvox and Temazepam 20mg for nights. Oh yeah.. because she was suicidal.
Good work doc
 
when i was 17 i went through a bit of a rough patch with losing my older brother to suicide,
lost basically any sort of motivation in life
getting out of bed was a total chore,

doctor prescribed me some zoloft,
wanting a second opinion after seeing my dad wind up hooked on prescriptions anti-d's and downers like serapax, valium and xanax and the sort, i wasnt too keen on the idea

made the long trip to visit our family doctor who understood our history, wound up putting me onto efexor for a couple of months.

but considering the amount of different friends of mine from school, quite a number of them were on zoloft at one point or another,
my family doctor definitely said he didnt reccommend zoloft for teenagers.

i highly doubt that it was illegal.
maybe things have changed now?
 
I'm not sure if it was illegal, I just remember the Australian was saying that Zoloft is supposed to only be given to minors suffering anxiety disorders, not depression due to the risk of increased suicidal thoughts. Fortunately I didn't suffer that side effect, but I was aware of it and if that did happen the first thing I would have done would be to go straight back to the doc.

Anyhow by the sounds of things he did the right thing by you.

He sure did, I can't thank him enough!

doctor prescribed me some zoloft,
wanting a second opinion after seeing my dad wind up hooked on prescriptions anti-d's and downers like serapax, valium and xanax and the sort, i wasnt too keen on the idea

made the long trip to visit our family doctor who understood our history, wound up putting me onto efexor for a couple of months.

but considering the amount of different friends of mine from school, quite a number of them were on zoloft at one point or another,
my family doctor definitely said he didnt reccommend zoloft for teenagers.

It is sad to see so many people stuck on anti-d's for the rest of their lives, especially since most of them are only recommended for six months or so. Like I said in my first post, therapy plus the Zoloft pulled me out of that depressive rut and got me back on track, but I couldn't imagine being on it for any long period of time.

i highly doubt that it was illegal.
maybe things have changed now?

Like I said, maybe it's not illegal after all...just not recommended/highly discouraged.
 
Its definitely not illegal, as my nutty lecturer said it "just because something isn't recommended doesn't mean you cant do it!". For example, anti-epileptics are known to cause birth defects and hence 'not recommended' in pregnancy, but would we really want to stop their meds and run the risk of seizures, depriving the unborn baby of oxygen?. Its only illegal to do something thats totally contraindicated.

A quick check of the 2007 Australian Medicines Handbook, it does not mention anything about using zoloft for depression in children under 18, but it is indicated for OCD, panic disorders and social phobia in children 12-18, for same doses as used for depression in adults.

I work in a pharmacy, and from what ive seen, most people under 18s get given Zoloft (or the generic, Lovan), so im ganna guess it has relatively good efficacy compared to other anti-depressants for the age group.

edit: few typos, repharsing
 
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In the U.S. the FDA our drug regulating agency required that a "black-box" warning be placed on SSRI drugs due to the reports of juveniles under the age of 18 committing suicide while on the drug. I do not have empirical evidence via a source that states that is wholly the reason for the warning, but it may be the catalyst. Perhaps this is why you have heard that is not to be prescribed for peds under 18. As far as U.S. law is concerned it would not be illegal, but perhaps unethical without serious consideration of the potential side effect.
 
In the U.S. the FDA our drug regulating agency required that a "black-box" warning be placed on SSRI drugs due to the reports of juveniles under the age of 18 committing suicide while on the drug. I do not have empirical evidence via a source that states that is wholly the reason for the warning, but it may be the catalyst. Perhaps this is why you have heard that is not to be prescribed for peds under 18. As far as U.S. law is concerned it would not be illegal, but perhaps unethical without serious consideration of the potential side effect.

Well, the article I read did mention that and also talked about black box warning on medications in Australia. Maybe The Australian just exaggerated a little when they said that Zoloft isn't supposed to be given to patients under 18, probably because they were trying to get a point across.
 
Technically a doctor can prescribe you any med he thinks will help, even if it's not approved for your condition - it's called 'off label' use. I was prescribed Zyban (approved in Australia for a stop-smoking aid, but used widely around the world as an antidepressant) for a short time for depression, even though that'd not supposed to be what it's for.
 
Some GPs in general are reluctant to prescribe SSRIs to under 18s due to the whole suicidal ideation thing etc.. but as always, the doc looked at your case on an individual basis and made a call.
 
It would be absurd that you can't do many prescription drugs even if you're 17 years and 11 months of age. And then, on your 18th birthday, your body has a 'click' in it, and you can go to doctors and have loads of previously non-recommended medicines. I think the main reason for the warning is that the drug companies haven't done research of under 18's, and don't want to get lawsuits to haunt them.

I love it when doctors show a bit of balls and common sense against the guvnment agencies (and sometimes even drug companies!), which shows they often see "outside the box". I hate narrow-minded bureaucracy. Although I agree that they should avoid prescribing thorazine-like stuff to 13-years-old.
 
ElectricFish said:
Some GPs in general are reluctant to prescribe SSRIs to under 18s due to the whole suicidal ideation thing etc.. but as always, the doc looked at your case on an individual basis and made a call.

As ElectricFish mentioned, the primary concern is that SSRIs may increase the risk of suicide in under 18s, one theory being that people are made more active/energised before the anti-depressant mood effects kick in. This could then give people the 'energy' to commit suicide.

I've been lead to believe (by some psychiatrists that research in this area) that the data relevant to this issue is fairly unclear and that a lot of this 'dangerous to youths' talk has been drummed up by legal fears rather than statistical evidence. The waters are further muddied by corporate interests and fears of litigation, e.g. many studies will exclude individuals who are thought to be possible suicide risks; but then the data is harder to interpret and far less relevant. Despite these difficulties I believe fluoxetine (prozac) is deemed safe for use in under 18s (I seem to remember that Zoloft also doesn't compare too badly in this age group) and that other SSRIs may be reasonably prescribed on the basis of a clinician's judgement.
 
It would be absurd that you can't do many prescription drugs even if you're 17 years and 11 months of age. And then, on your 18th birthday, your body has a 'click' in it, and you can go to doctors and have loads of previously non-recommended medicines.

Ditto for alcohol and tobacco. I always found the age limits absurd...what they have in many European countries I believe is a much better system (16 for beer, 18 for spirits I think), and I also am under the impression they have a much better drinking culture then we do.

Slightly related, I also think it's shit that under-18's have to pay taxes even though we can't vote. No taxation without representation!
 
^oo broadening the topics here hehe, I think the high tax rate just sux rather, Im looking at say Korea and its fkn 4% or something

Under 18 tax well interesting point but they are still beneficiarys of tax dollars in the form of infrastructure etc and what about teenage sensations making mega bucks! The government will always make sure they get a piece of that pie!

But I see your point on voting perhaps non compulsory voting should be allowed for 16-18yr olds or something but I doubt you guys care that much for that to get pushed through? Im sure I didnt lol

It does seem silly that after that 18th birthday you can all of a sudden go to clubs n pubs and buy booze and ciggys but well the line has to be drawn somewhere I guess hey. Better than 21 in NZ and US I think isnt it?
 
But I see your point on voting perhaps non compulsory voting should be allowed for 16-18yr olds or something but I doubt you guys care that much for that to get pushed through? Im sure I didnt lol

Lol, yeah that's a good point. It seems like an exception rather then the rule in wanting the right to vote before the age of 18.

It does seem silly that after that 18th birthday you can all of a sudden go to clubs n pubs and buy booze and ciggys but well the line has to be drawn somewhere I guess hey. Better than 21 in NZ and US I think isnt it?

Yes, 21 seems to me to be an even more absurd line in the sand. The problem with drinking at a young age is that too much will probably have detrimental effects on your brain and body; however, the answer is to change the drinking culture of the nation, something I'm glad to see the Rudd Government is doing.
 
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