Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
March 17, 2026
Yunjia Liu, Qiang Wang
Adolescent major depressive disorder (MDD) is a leading cause of disability worldwide and a major, modifiable risk factor for suicide, which remains the second leading cause of death in this age group.1 For 30% to 50% of patients who fail to achieve remission despite multiple treatment steps, the clinical and psychosocial consequences are substantial.2 Although selective serotonin-reuptake...
Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
July 1, 2025
Samuel Dotson, James Luccarelli
3 citations
We read with interest the Commentary by Jeffrey et al. encouraging clinical research using psychedelics for adolescents.1 Throughout their commentary, the authors operate under the general presupposition that psychedelics have demonstrated a favorable safety profile in adults, and that therefore teenagers approaching an adult level of neurodevelopment can likely be safely treated with...
Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
March 7, 2025
Colette Kosik-Gonzalez, Dong-Jing Fu, Li Nancy Chen et al.
14 citations
To evaluate the efficacy, safety, and tolerability of esketamine nasal spray vs psychoactive placebo (oral midazolam) in rapidly reducing depressive symptoms in adolescents with major depressive disorder at imminent risk for suicide. This double-blind, double-dummy, phase 2b study randomized (1:1:1:2) 147 adolescents (12 to <18 years old) to esketamine (28, 56, or 84 mg) or midazolam twice...
Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
December 19, 2024
Paul E Croarkin, Isabella Sutherland, Ming-Fen Ho
1 citation
We read with great interest the commentary by Jeffrey et al. entitled "Clinical Research Trials of Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy in Adolescents Aged 16 to 17 Years: Rationale Balanced With Caution."1 We appreciate the efforts of the authors, the scholarship of this commentary, and the advocacy for research initiatives with psychedelic therapeutics such as psilocybin, lysergic acid diethylamide,...
Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
December 1, 2024
Jessica K Jeffrey, Marc J. Weintraub, Charles S. Grob
12 citations
Youth today are burdened by significant mental health challenges. In 2022, 25% of adolescents aged 12 to 17 years experienced a mental illness, with 20% experiencing a depressive episode, 12.5% reporting serious thoughts of suicide, and 17% meeting criteria for a substance use disorder.1 Close to 5% of adolescents experience posttraumatic stress disorder.2 Impairing psychiatric symptoms remain...
Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
June 12, 2020
Christian A. Webb, Elana S. Israel, Emily L. Belleau et al.
Objective: Understanding the fluctuating emotional and cognitive states of adolescents with depressive symptoms requires fine-grained and naturalistic measurements. This study used ecological momentary assessment (EMA) to investigate the affective correlates and consequences of mind-wandering in adolescents with anhedonia (AH) and typically developing (TD) controls. In addition, we examined the...