What you are bringing up is just off-label prescribing and doctors do it for good reason all the time.

If you have questions about it, ask the doctor about it. Ranting on here about not "taking them up" on a "marketing ploy" reflects multiple areas of ignorance.

If it is something like an antipsychotic and prescribed by a pediatrician, your insurance company might want to know. They prefer these meds be prescribed by a specialist but believe it or not, there are some garden variety pediatricians who do prescribe them.

What’s the med, OP?

Did you get your medical degree from Google? This post is so uneducated.

You didn’t like hearing your kid might need a (most likely) psychiatric drug prescribed for adults? Look inward and see if you are part of the problem or the solution.

^ Not related to psych meds

This related to psych meds, but it explains why many commons used drugs are not specifically approved for pediatric use: https://childmind.org/article/using-medications-without-fda-approval/

Yeah, the age thing is often a size-weight rule rather than actual age. Or they have only tested in adults.
My friend had to push for a drug for her kid that is usually only age 13 and up, but her kid was 10 and larger than average and the drug was specific for the issue the child had.

This is very common. I have a kid with lots of health issues and she has been prescribed meds that haven’t been FDA approved for kids many times.

Anonymous wrote:if a specialist doctor pushed for medication for a kid which should only be prescribed if person is at least 18yrs of age? Didn't take the new- to- the practice doctor up on their pharmaceutical marketing ploy.

Why go to a doctor if you're going to ignore their expert advice?

Don't take anything a psychiatrist prescribes unless it is absolutely necessary. Have met a couple at gatherings who are some of the most egotistical asses both men so maybe it's the fact they are men that makes them full of ego

Op plenty of medications are used off label all the time by excellent physicians, including ones approved for 18 plus that are sometimes used for minors.

It’s possible you went to a quack but the fact they rx’d something approved for 18+ is in no way proof of that.

The adult-only designation is not a hard and fast rule, OP. It depends WHY it has been recommended for adults. You can look that up easily and make your own determination.

Doctors have a lot of leeway in how they prescribe, and they can prescribe "off-label", so reporting a physician for such practices will get you nowhere, unless you can claim that significant harm occurred to your child while taking the medication as prescribed by their doctor.

My kids have been given medicine for adults before. How large is the kid? Our practice goes by weight.

I’d want to talk to a pharmacist first as to why the 18+ guideline is in place and would they even fill it first someone younger. I fromrion would be key here.

if a specialist doctor pushed for medication for a kid which should only be prescribed if person is at least 18yrs of age? Didn't take the new- to- the practice doctor up on their pharmaceutical marketing ploy.