Drug Information Is Inadequate for Children

Children are not mini-adults. Their response to medications can be quite different, and they may need special dosing and precautions. That is why a new FDA report is so discouraging. Most medications are not tested in children before FDA approval. As a result pediatricians, family practice physicians and parents have a difficult time telling what dose is appropriate for a youngster.
About half of the 500 drug labels in the review lacked dosing and safety information for children. Not infrequently, the most serious conditions such as cancer and heart disease are the very ones for which critical information is lacking. Doctors usually attempt to adjust the dose, but without real data this is a big challenge. Although testing drugs in children is complicated and ethically difficult, we need more creative efforts to improve treatment for the youngest, most vulnerable patients.
[Journal of the American Medical Association, May 9, 2012]