MedPage Today (7/6, Putka) reports, “Adults with cannabis use disorder had a moderately increased risk of morbidity and in-hospital mortality after major elective surgery compared with those without cannabis use disorder, a large retrospective study found.” Data show that “among 12,422 hospitalized patients, a composite outcome of perioperative complications and mortality occurred in 7.73% of the cannabis use disorder group and 6.57% of a matched control group.” The findings were published online in JAMA Surgery.

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— MedPage Today (requires login and subscription)

HealthDay (7/6, Norton) reports, “Loneliness might be a true heartbreaker for people with diabetes – raising their odds of a heart attack even more than unhealthy lifestyle habits do,” according to findings from “a new study of over 18,000 adults with the blood sugar disease” published online in the European Heart Journal. The study team “found that people who reported feeling lonely were up to 26% more likely to suffer a heart attack or stroke in the next decade, compared to those who felt more socially connected.”

Related Links:

— “Loneliness Can Really Break a Heart in People With Diabetes,”Amy Norton, HealthDay, July 6, 2023

Healio (7/6, Young) reports, “Depression associated with hormonal contraception” (HC) “may indicate susceptibility to postpartum depression,” investigators concluded in findings published online April 26 in JAMA Psychiatry. In the “study of 188,648 first-time mothers, 5,722 (mean age, 26.7 years) had a history of depression associated with HC use and 18,431 (mean age, 27.1 years) had a history of depression not associated with HC.” The study revealed that “women with depression associated with HC initiation had a higher risk for postpartum depression.”

Related Links:

— “Depression associated with hormonal contraception indicates risk for postpartum depression,”Kate Young, Healio, July 6, 2023

Healio (7/5, Weldon) reports, “The FDA said Wednesday that it has warned six companies about illegally selling what it called ‘copycat’ edibles containing delta-8 tetrahydrocannabinol” (delta-8 THC), “a psychoactive and intoxicating substance found in cannabis sativa plants.” The substance “has not been approved by the FDA for any safe use.” In a July 5 press release, the agency “said the copycat products – often designed to resemble snack foods such as chips, cookies, candy and gummies – could be accidentally consumed by children in large quantities without realizing it.”

Related Links:

— “FDA warns companies about illegally selling ‘copycat’ edibles with delta-8 THC,”Rose Weldon, Healio, July 5, 2023

According to MedPage Today (7/5, DePeau-Wilson), for children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (AD/HD), “use of prescription stimulant medication to manage their symptoms was not associated with later substance use,” investigators concluded in a “longitudinal analysis” that “followed patients with” AD/HD “over a 16-year period from childhood through adolescence into early adulthood.” The findings of the 547-child study were published online July 5 in JAMA Psychiatry.

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— MedPage Today (requires login and subscription)

The New York Times (7/5, Abelson) reports, “People with private Medicare coverage may not be getting the mental health services they need because they cannot find a psychiatrist within their plan’s network,” investigators concluded in findings published online July 5 in the journal Health Affairs. The study revealed that “more than half of the counties…studied did not have a single psychiatrist participating in a Medicare Advantage plan, the private-sector counterpart to traditional Medicare.” Psychiatrists “may be unwilling to participate in Medicare Advantage plans because of the low payments paid by the insurers, coupled with all of the required paperwork, said” Robert Trestman, MD, PhD, who chairs “the council on health care systems and financing for the American Psychiatric Association.” Dr. Trestman said, “Many of the challenges and frustrations are emphasized in the Medicare Advantage plans.”

Related Links:

— “Medicare Advantage Plans Offer Few Psychiatrists,” Reed Abelson, The New York Times, July 5, 2023

CNN (7/4, McPhillips) reports, “Residents of 12 states in the South and Midwest are more likely to smoke – and to smoke more – than people living in the rest of the United States, according to a new report” from the nonprofit Truth Initiative, which “has dubbed that group of states ‘Tobacco Nation,’ a region that spans Alabama, Arkansas, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Ohio, Oklahoma, Tennessee and West Virginia.” CNN adds, “Overall, smoking prevalence is about 50% higher there than in the rest of the U.S.”

Related Links:

— “The 12 states where smoking is 50% more common than in the rest of the US,”Deidre McPhillips, CNN, July 4, 2023

The New York Times (7/4, Mather) reports, “For the first time, the degenerative brain disease” known as chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) “has been diagnosed in a female professional athlete, researchers reported” in findingspublished online in the journal Acta Neuropathologica. Australian rules football player Heather Anderson, “who died last year” by suicide, “was found to have had C.T.E” as evidenced by “three lesions” on her brain.

According to NBC News (7/4, DaSilva), “Anderson’s family had donated her brain to the Australian Sports Brain Bank, where the analysis took place,” hoping “to learn ‘whether a lifetime of exposure to repetitive head trauma contributed to (Anderson’s) death.’”

CNN (7/4, Whiteman) reports, “Anderson started playing football when she was five years old and went on to play contact sport for 18 years across two codes – AFL and rugby league – before her death…at 28 last November, according to the paper.” During the course of “her career, Anderson had one confirmed concussion, and suffered another suspected four, according to her family.” The diagnosis “shows women’s contact sports also need CTE minimization plans to reduce players’ exposure to cumulative head injuries, and those plans need to start at the junior level.”

Related Links:

— “C.T.E. Found for First Time in Female Pro Athlete,”Victor Mather, The New York Times, July 4, 2023

HealthDay (7/3, Murez) reported, “Patients recently diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease who have early hallucinations are at greater risk of faster mental decline,” investigators concluded in the findings of a 75-patient study published online in the journal Nature Mental Health.

Related Links:

— “One Early Signal That Parkinson’s Progression Could Be Swift,”Cara Murez, HealthDay, July 3, 2023

Healio (7/3, Weldon) reported, “Youth with autism are three times as likely to have a co-occurring diagnosis of gender dysphoria than peers who do not have autism,” investigators concluded in “findings from a study of more than 900,000 adolescents published” online in the journal Pediatrics.

Related Links:

— “Gender dysphoria more prevalent among youth with autism, study finds,”Rose Weldon, Healio, July 3, 2023