[Antidepressive drugs in children and adolescents].

The aim of the review is to define the specificity of the response to pharmacotherapy in child and adolescent mood disorders. Methodological issues, nosographic definitions and developmental modifications in neurotransmitters and neuroreceptors are discussed; these three factors can account for the apparent inefficacy of antidepressive pharmacotherapy in children and adolescents. Specific indications, dosage and administration, side effects and the clinical examinations to prevent them, are analyzed for the following antidepressants: tricyclics, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, monoamine oxidase inhibitors, lithium, anticonvulsants, trazadone, benzamides.