Year: 2003 Source: Archives of General Psychiatry, v.60, no.10, (October 2003), p.978-982 SIEC No: 20060008

The relationship between regional changes in antidepressant medication treatment & suicide in American adolescents from 1990-2000 was evaluated. There was a significant adjusted negative relationship between regional change in antidepressant medication treatment & suicide over the study period. A 1% increase in adolescent use of antidepressants was associated with a 0.23 suicide per 100,000 adolescents per year. This inverse relationship raises the possibility of a role for using antidepressant treatment in youth suicide prevention efforts, particularly for males, older adolescents, & adolescents in lower-income regions. (49 refs.)