Pharmacotherapy of children and adolescents with bipolar disorder.

The identification and treatment of children and adolescents with a bipolar disorder is often challenging and difficult. Many of the psychotropic agents used to treat adults with bipolar disorder may also be-used to treat children and adolescents with these disorders. Further controlled trials using combination pharmacotherapy in children and adolescents with bipolar disorders are needed to advance the field of pediatric bipolarity and provide optimal care for these patients. There are multiple ongoing trials of mood stabilizers and atypical antipsychotics that will provide important controlled data that are currently lacking in the field.