Young children prescribed antipsychotic drugs

January 15, 2010 Research in the journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry also finds that children between the ages of 2 to 5 have been prescribed powerful antipsychotic drugs.

The research suggests that it is still rare to prescribe the drugs to 2-year-olds, but the practice is becoming more frequent.

Diagnosing young children with this disorder has been controversial. Bipolar disorder was once thought to emerge only during adolescence or later.

Many doctors say they try other interventions before turning to strong medications.