Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors for Treatment of Children with Fragile X Syndrome?

Sertraline improved motor skills, visual perceptual ability, and social participation in young children with FXS. Expressive language was improved in children with FXS and autism.

Fragile X syndrome (FXS) is a major cause of intellectual disability and a single-gene cause of autistic spectrum disorder. Approximately 60% of children with FXS have co-existing autism. In both conditions, serotonin levels are low in early childhood when synaptic connections are immature.

Researchers randomized 52 children aged 2 to 6 years with FXS to low-dose sertraline (2.5 or 5.0 mg/day, depending on age) or placebo for 6 months. Standardized measures of language development, fine motor skills, visual perception, and social participation were administered at baseline and 6 months.

There were no significant differences between groups in improvement in the primary outcomes, expressive language and Clinical Global Impression Scale. However…

Reviewing Author

Martin T. Stein, MD

Disclosures

Consultant / Advisory boardPearson Neuroscience Advisory Board

Speaker’s bureauAmerican Academy of Pediatrics

RoyaltiesElsevier, Inc.

Editorial boardsJournal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics