§ Paul FlynnTo ask the Secretary of State for Health whether Seroxat is prescribed to children under 18. [158526]
§ Ms Rosie WintertonParoxetine (Seroxat) is prescribed to patients under the age of 18 although it is not authorised for use in such patients. However, in the United Kingdom a doctor may prescribe outside the terms of a marketing authorisation on his/her own responsibility, if he/she considers that this is in the best interests of the patient and having informed him/herself of the benefits and risks of such an action.
Following advice from the Committee on Safety of Medicines and its expert group on the safety of paroxetine and other Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs), the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency published summaries of clinical trial data relating to all SSRIs on 10 December 2003 in order that prescribes might make informed decisions.