Efficacy and safety of aripiprazole in child and adolescent patients

Aripiprazole (APZ) has a unique pharmacological profile, as a partial agonist at the dopamine D2 and serotonin 5HT1A receptors and an antagonist at the serotonin 5HT2A receptor; this drug has few side effects (such as extrapyramidal syndrome, hyperprolactinemia, weight gain, metabolic disorders, and sedation) which are typical problems with other antipsychotic drugs. Due to its high tolerability, it is possible to safely administer it to children and adolescents. Efficacy and tolerability of APZ in children and adolescents have been well demonstrated in many clinical studies, which supported approvals granted by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for schizophrenia, bipolar diseases, and irritability associated with autistic disorder in children and adolescents. APZ is expected to exert sedative, anti-depressive, and anti-anxiety effects, and stabilize emotion. APZ is an antipsychotic drug which could be useful for a wider spectrum of psychiatric disorders in children and adolescents. There is little risk of deterioration (such as disinhibition and acting out) and rapid stabilization is easy to achieve in children and adolescents without definitive diagnoses or with a combination of more than one spectrum of disorders. The effectiveness of APZ in children and adolescents is reviewed and discussed, given its pharmacological profile and the outcomes of various clinical studies. However, randomized or blind studies are still limited, and the majority of reports referenced here are open-label studies and case reports. Conclusions drawn from such studies must be evaluated with caution, and a further accumulation of controlled studies is thus needed.