MD Magazine (4/14, Campbell) reports researchers are “shedding light on a potential link between post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and mental stress-induced myocardial ischemia in patients with stable coronary artery disease [CAD].” The 303-patient study revealed that “patients who survived a recent myocardial infarction (MI) and had PTSD were at a greater risk of developing myocardial ischemia than those who did not have PTSD.” The findings were published online April 14 in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “PTSD Associated With Increase of Mental Stress Induced Myocardial Infarction, “Patrick Campbell, MD Magazine, April 14, 2020

Psychiatric News (4/14) reports that in a viewpoint published online April 10 in JAMA Internal Medicine, Sandro Galea, MD, of Boston University School of Medicine; Raina M. Merchant, MD, of Perelman School of Medicine; and Nicole Lurie, MD, of the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations in Norway, “recommended three steps they believe can help…address the likely rise of mental disorders and related challenges from the” COVID-19 pandemic. The three steps include making “plans to address loneliness and its aftereffects as populations physically isolate and to develop ways to intervene,” having “mechanisms in place for surveillance, reporting, and intervention, particularly when it comes to domestic violence and child abuse,” and bolstering “the mental health system.”

Related Links:

— “Take Steps Now to Mitigate Mental Health Effects of COVID-19, Psychiatric News, April 14, 2020

HealthDay (4/14, McNiff) reports, “Teenagers who use marijuana to fall asleep may be setting themselves up for insomnia later in life,” researchers concluded after analyzing “the sleep habits and history of marijuana use among 1,882 teens from Colorado.” The study revealed that “roughly one-third of the participants who started using marijuana before age 18 had insomnia later in life.” In comparison, just “20% of the other participants – who either never became regular marijuana users or started their use at age 18 or older – had insomnia in adulthood.” The findings were published online in the journal Sleep.

Related Links:

— “Using Pot to Help You Sleep? It Could Backfire, “Serena McNiff, HealthDay, April 14, 2020

Psychiatric News (4/14) reports that in a viewpoint published online April 10 in JAMA Internal Medicine, Sandro Galea, MD, of Boston University School of Medicine; Raina M. Merchant, MD, of Perelman School of Medicine; and Nicole Lurie, MD, of the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations in Norway, “recommended three steps they believe can help…address the likely rise of mental disorders and related challenges from the” COVID-19 pandemic. The three steps include making “plans to address loneliness and its aftereffects as populations physically isolate and to develop ways to intervene,” having “mechanisms in place for surveillance, reporting, and intervention, particularly when it comes to domestic violence and child abuse,” and bolstering “the mental health system.”

Related Links:

— “Take Steps Now to Mitigate Mental Health Effects of COVID-19, Psychiatric News, April 14, 2020

According to HealthDay (4/13, Norton), “people who carry a gene called APOE4 face an increased risk of Alzheimer’s,” an effect that “may be lessened if they” carry another gene called “klotho.” Investigators arrived at that conclusion after “collecting data on more than 20,000 people age 60 and up – some with Alzheimer’s, some with milder impairment, and some with intact thinking and memory skills.” The study revealed that “among APOE4 carriers, those who also had one copy of the protective klotho variant were 30% less likely to develop Alzheimer’s by age 80.” It does not appear, however, “that the klotho variant protected people who did not carry the APOE4 variant.” The findings were published online April 13 in JAMA Neurology. MedPage Today (4/13, George) also covers the study.

Related Links:

— “Certain Gene Might Help Shield At-Risk People From Alzheimer’s, “Amy Norton, HealthDay, April 13, 2020

Psychiatric News (4/13) reports, “The rapid spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) has led to dramatic public health actions at a national level to reduce human contact in hopes of slowing virus transmission,” but in a viewpoint published online April 10 in JAMA Psychiatry, “mental health experts discuss the potential of this long-term isolation to increase suicide risk.” In order to help mitigate “these risks, psychiatrists and mental health professionals should determine ways to incorporate mental health screening into COVID-19 screening and prevention efforts.” In addition, they should “consider ways to reach patients who are using tele-mental health services or receiving care in alternative treatment settings (such as a private space outside).”

Related Links:

— “Experts Warn of Potential of COVID-19 to Increase Suicide Risk, Psychiatric News, April 13, 2020

MedPage Today (4/13, Hlavinka) reports that even though “personal protection is often cited as a motive for firearm ownership, self-defense homicides accounted for far fewer firearm-related deaths than accidental deaths and suicides in Washington state’s King County,” research indicated. The study revealed that “for each case of self-defense homicide to occur in the home from 2011 to 2018, there were 44.1 suicides…7.3 criminal homicides,” and “0.9 unintentional deaths.” What’s more, “across the seven-year period, the incidence rate of firearm deaths was 3.9 per 100,000 person-years,” investigators learned. The findings were published online April 13 in a research letter published in JAMA Internal Medicine.

Related Links:

— MedPage Today (requires login and subscription)

HealthDay (4/10) reported that a Chinese study published in JAMA Neurology “finds that strokes, altered consciousness and other neurological issues are relatively common in more serious cases of COVID-19.” After looking at 214 cases of severe coronavirus illness treated “during the early phase of the global pandemic, doctors reported that 36.4% of patients displayed neurological symptoms.” Researchers says that “sometimes these symptoms appeared in the relative absence of ‘typical’ symptoms of COVID-19.” The team said that “in such cases, doctors should consider coronavirus infection as a potential cause of the problem ‘to avoid delayed diagnosis or misdiagnosis.’”

Related Links:

— “Brain, Nervous System Affected in 1 in 3 Cases of Severe COVID-19, “E.J. Mundell, HealthDay, April 10, 2020

TIME (4/10) reported that “a study published March 23 in the medical journal JAMA found that, among 1,257 healthcare workers working with COVID-19 patients in China, 50.4% reported symptoms of depression, 44.6% symptoms of anxiety, 34% insomnia, and 71.5% reported distress.” Meanwhile, in interviews with TIME, many doctors and nurses said they’re “afraid of spreading the disease to their families, frustrated about a lack of adequate protective gear and a sense they can’t do enough for their patients, exhausted as hours have stretched longer without a clear end in sight, and, most of all, deeply sad for their dying patients, many of whom are slipping away without their loved ones at their side.” Dr. Albert Wu, of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, “says that evidence from the 2003 SARS outbreak suggests that failing to support healthcare workers in a crisis…can erode their ‘wellbeing and resilience,’ ultimately leading to chronic burnout.”

Related Links:

— “‘We Carry That Burden.’ Medical Workers Fighting COVID-19 Are Facing a Mental Health Crisis, “Tara Law, TIME, April 10, 2020

The Wall Street Journal (4/12, Petersen, Subscription Publication) reports that the coronavirus pandemic has been especially difficult for individuals suffering from depression and anxiety because of additional stress and isolation. According to a survey released by the American Psychiatric Association, over one-third of Americans say the pandemic is having a serious impact on their mental well-being.

Related Links:

— “The Struggle to Cope With Depression Amid Coronavirus, “Andrea Petersen, The Wall Street Journal, April 12, 2020