Continuous monitoring of pediatric drug utilization is important for ensuring rational use and prioritizing research. This study provides an overview of pediatric prescription drug use among Danish children and adolescents from 2005–2023. Using Danish nationwide individual-level dispensing data, we identified all redeemed prescriptions for individuals < 18 years from January 2005–December 2023. We computed overall annual prevalence proportions of users and mean number of prescriptions per child. For all non-antibiotic drugs, we further determined the quantity of drug use measured in defined daily doses (DDDs) and stratified all analyses by age and Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical classification first and forth level. During the study period, the overall yearly prevalence of prescription drug use decreased due to reductions in antibiotic prescribing. When antibiotic prescriptions were disregarded, the prevalence of children with at least one prescription increased from 38% in 2005 to 42% in 2023, while the mean number of prescriptions and DDDs increased from 1.2 prescriptions per child and 51.2 million DDDs in 2005 to 1.5 prescriptions per child and 76.5 million DDDs in 2023. This increase was primarily driven by prescribing of central nervous system drugs to adolescents 12–17 years, with a substantial increase in centrally acting sympathomimetics and melatonin use. Overall pediatric drug prescribing is decreasing due to reduced antibiotic use. Non-antibiotic drug use is, however, rising, especially among adolescents and notably for psychotropic drugs. These findings underscore the importance of ongoing monitoring and call for further research into underlying causes and prescription practices for psychotropics.

持续监测儿科药物的使用对于确保合理使用和确定研究的优先级非常重要。本研究概述了 2005 年至 2023 年丹麦儿童和青少年的儿科处方药使用情况。使用丹麦全国个人层面的配药数据，我们确定了从 2005 年 1 月到 2023 年 12 月 18 年的个人 < 的所有赎回处方。我们计算了使用者的总体年患病率和每个儿童的平均处方数量。对于所有非抗生素药物，我们进一步确定了以定义日剂量 （DDD） 测量的药物使用量，并按年龄和解剖治疗化学分类第一级和第四级对所有分析进行分层。在研究期间，由于抗生素处方的减少，处方药使用的总体年流行率有所下降。当忽视抗生素处方时，至少拥有一种处方的儿童患病率从 2005 年的 38% 增加到 2023 年的 42%，而处方和 DDD 的平均数量从 2005 年的每儿童 1.2 张处方和 5120 万张 DDD 增加到 2023 年的每儿童 1.5 张处方和 7650 万张 DDD。这种增长主要是由于为 12-17 岁的青少年开具中枢神经系统药物，其中中枢交感神经药和褪黑激素的使用大幅增加。由于抗生素使用减少，总体儿科药物处方正在减少。然而，非抗生素药物的使用正在增加，尤其是在青少年中，尤其是精神药物。这些发现强调了持续监测的重要性，并呼吁进一步研究精神药物的根本原因和处方做法。