Antidepressants and suicidality: the basis of controversies

Regulatory agencies of different European countries and the United States have been critically examining the possible link between suicidality and antidepressant use in children and adults, which has resulted in an FDA directive to the manufacturers of all antidepressant medications to add a 'black box' warning. 'Black box' warning describes the increased risk of suicidality in persons who take antidepressants. Because the news media's coverage of the antidepressant-suicide controversy has increased dramatically in the last few years, serious concerns need to be performed. In this review, the possible risk-benefit ratio has been estimated according to the use of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) antidepressants due to relevant psychobiological, clinical and epidemiologic data.