CNN (12/26, Howard) reports a study published in JAMA Psychiatry found that “people using illicit opioids are not only at an increased risk of a drug-related death, but…they [also] have an elevated risk of dying from noncommunicable diseases, infectious diseases, suicide and unintentional injuries.” The researchers found that “among people who used opioids outside of a prescription, suicide deaths occurred at almost eight times the expected rate and unintentional injuries at seven times the expected rate.” In addition, the researchers found that “death from interpersonal violence was relatively infrequent but occurred at more than nine times the expected rate.”

USA Today Examines The Impact Of Drug Use At Work. USA Today (12/26, Jones, O’Donnell) reports on the problem of people using drugs, or being under the influence of drugs, while working. According to a survey from DrugAbuse.com, 23% of workers in the US “say they have used drugs or alcohol on the job.” In addition, “even if they don’t use themselves, 62 percent say they know at least one person who has had an unsanctioned drink or used narcotics at work.” The article also examines the economic cost of people’s drug usage including missed days, impaired workers, and accidents in the workplace.

Related Links:

— “People using illicit opioids face higher risk of death from these causes, study finds, “Jacqueline Howard, CNN, December 26, 2019

Endocrinology Advisor (12/23, Akirov) reports, “In a survey of youth and young adults with type 1 diabetes (T1D), nearly 9% reported suicidal/death ideation,” researchers concluded. The findings from the 550-participant survey were published online in Diabetes Care.

Related Links:

— “Suicide and Type 1 Diabetes: Importance of Risk Assessment in Young Patients, “Amit Akirov, Endocrinology Advisor, December 23, 2019

Psychiatric News (12/23) reports, “People with depression may be more likely to seek treatment if they know of others with emotional problems or others who have sought treatment for emotional problems,” researchers concluded in a study that involved 239 participants “who screened positive for major depression.” The findings were published online Dec. 11 in Psychiatric Services, a publication of the American Psychiatric Association.

Related Links:

— “Knowing Others in Treatment May Encourage People With Depression to Seek Care, Psychiatric News, December 23, 2019

MedPage Today (12/23, Hlavinka) reports, “Presence of anxiety disorders in teenage girls was predictive of later restrictive eating habits,” investigators concluded. In the “longitudinal study,” among “2,406 teenage girls, such disorders – including social or specific phobias, panic disorders, and generalized anxiety disorders – were associated with increased likelihood of fasting for weight loss or to avoid weight gain two years later, after adjusting for fasting, binge-eating, and weight status at baseline.” But “when stratified by age, this association was only significant among older girls, such that adolescents with anxiety disorders at ages 13 and 14 were not significantly more likely to engage in fasting at ages 15 and 16.” The findings of the 2,406-participant study were published online Dec. 17 in the European Eating Disorders Review.

Related Links:

— “Anxiety Symptoms Predict Later Fasting Among Teen Girls, ” Elizabeth Hlavinka, MedPage Today, December 23, 2019

In an over 3,300 word article, NBC News (12/20, Einhorn) reported on its website about the effectiveness of “brain training” to treat AD/HD, anxiety, autism, and other disorders in children. The article said that there is “a fast-growing industry” that promises “permanent changes to the human mind” through after-school brain training programs for children with AD/HD and/or autism. The industry is “based on the premise that targeted games and exercises can rewire the brain to boost memory, sharpen thinking or decrease the challenges associated with anxiety, autism, ADHD and other disorders.” However, that premise “has faced significant criticism from doctors and scientists who warn that some are making dubious claims.” In addition, some families have gone into debt paying for these programs that “can cost $12,000 or more for six months of training, three days a week.”

Related Links:

— “Parents pay thousands for ‘brain training’ to help kids with ADHD and autism. But does it work?, “Erin Einhorn, NBC News, December 20, 2019

The AP (12/21, Aljas, Little) reported that there were “48 jail suicides since the 2017 launch of a sweeping Texas law aimed at reducing such deaths through better screening and monitoring.” The Sandra Bland Act “hasn’t made a dent in the number of suicides, and experts blame its failure to address one of the most significant factors: the lack of staff to watch troubled inmates.” The AP “and the University of Maryland’s Capital News Service compiled a database of more than 400 lawsuits in the last five years alleging mistreatment of inmates in U.S. prisons and jails” and found nearly “40 percent involved suicides in local jails – 135 deaths and 30 attempts,” while “all but eight involved allegations of neglect by the staff.”

Related Links:

— “Ambitious Texas law fails to make dent in jailhouse suicides, “Riin Aljas and Ryan E. Little, AP, December 21 2019

Psychiatric News (12/20) reported, “Alcohol use may raise the short-term risk of suicide in patients who receive outpatient mental health treatment,” researchers concluded after analyzing data “from the electronic health records of more than 44,000 adults who had outpatient visits to a mental health professional between January 2010 and June 2015.” The findings were published online Dec. 18 in the journal General Hospital Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Heavy Alcohol Use Associated With Higher Risk for Suicide, Psychiatric News, December 20, 2019

MD Magazine (12/20, Rosenfeld) reported, “A motivational interviewing intervention did not initially drive at-risk adolescents to seek mental health treatment following an emergency department (ED) visit,” research indicated. Specifically, “adolescent patients who presented at the ED for nonpsychiatric concerns but screened positive for suicide risk did not significantly benefit from the Suicidal Teens Accessing Treatment After an Emergency Department Visit (STAT-ED) intervention,” the study revealed. The findings of the 168-patient randomized trial were published online Dec. 20 in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “Intervention Did Not Improve Adolescents Seeking Mental Healthcare, “Samara Rosenfeld, MD Magazine, December 20, 2019

HealthDay (12/19, Thompson) reports researchers found that “obesity in middle age is associated with an increased risk of dementia later in life” for women. In the study published in Neurology, the researchers found that women “who were obese in their mid-50s had 21% greater risk of being diagnosed with dementia 15 or more years later, compared with women who had a healthy weight.”

Related Links:

— “Obesity in Middle Age Could Raise Odds for Alzheimer’s Later, “Dennis Thompson, HealthDay, December 19, 2019

NBC News (12/19, Charles) reports on its website that the “suicide rate for black youth is rising faster than for any other racial and ethnic group, now making it the second-leading cause of death for black children aged 10 to 19, according to a congressional report released this week.” The 38-page report “was conducted by a task force of the Congressional Black Caucus and found a sharp rise in the rate of suicides and attempts among black youth.” It also “found that suicide attempts rose 73 percent from 1991 to 2017 for black adolescents of both sexes, and injuries from attempted suicides rose 122 percent for black boys in the same time period.”

Related Links:

— “Suicide rate rising fast for black youth, report finds, “Nick Charles, NBC News, December 19, 2019