According to HealthDay (4/11, Mozes), “research suggests that opioid prescription rates and suicide risk appear to go hand-in-hand” because suicide risk appears to decrease “as prescription rates fall.” Researchers came to this conclusion after examining “U.S. federal government data collected between 2009 and 2017 on opioid-related deaths” and cross-referencing the data “with information that tracked opioid prescription patterns over the period.” The findings were published online April 11 in the American Journal of Psychiatry, a publication of the American Psychiatric Association.

Related Links:

— “Curbing Opioid Prescriptions Won’t Raise Suicide Rates: Study “Alan Mozes, HealthDay, April 11, 2023

The New York Times (4/10, Ghorayshi) reports, “In 2012, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimated that boys were 4.7 times as likely as girls to receive an autism diagnosis,” but “by 2018, the ratio had dipped to 4.2 to 1.” A March 24 analysis published in the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report that was “based on the health and education records of more than 226,000 eight-year-olds across the” U.S. revealed that “the figure was 3.8 to 1.” And: “ For 2020, one in 36 children aged 8 years (approximately 4% of boys and 1% of girls) was estimated to have ASD.”

Related Links:

— “More Girls Are Being Diagnosed With Autism ” Azeen Ghorayshi, The New York Times, April 10, 2023

HealthDay (4/10, Murez) reports a recent study blames the “Medicaid cliff” for worsening “racial and ethnic disparities, noting that Black and Hispanic adults whose annual income is just above the federal poverty level are more likely to experience cost-related barriers to care.” The study associated “being just above the poverty line, and therefore ineligible for Medicaid, to a 21% drop in annual outpatient visits.” Additionally, “Black people and Hispanic folks on Medicare also filled 15% fewer prescriptions, while the study found barely any change for white people.” The findings were published in JAMA Internal Medicine.

Related Links:

— “For ‘Near Poor’ Seniors, Medicaid ‘Cliff’ Could Keep Health Care Out of Reach “Cara Murez, HealthDay, April 10, 2023

Psychiatric News (4/10) reports, “Individuals with schizophrenia who began treatment with clozapine significantly increased their use of community-based services and decreased their use of psychiatric inpatient services over the next six months,” researchers concluded in the findings of a 163-patient study published online April 5 in the journal Psychiatric Services, a publication of the American Psychiatric Association.

Related Links:

— “Patients on Clozapine Found to Significantly Increase Use of Community-Based MH Programs, Psychiatric News, April 10, 2023

NBC News (4/9, Avery) reported, “Gay, lesbian and bisexual youths are at far greater risk of sleep problems than their straight counterparts,” investigators concluded in a study that “analyzed data on more than 8,500 young people ages 10 to 14.” The study revealed that “35.1% of those who identified as gay, lesbian or bisexual reported trouble falling or staying asleep in the previous two weeks, compared to 13.5% of straight-identifying adolescents.” Additionally, “30.8% of questioning youths – those who answered ‘maybe’ to being gay, lesbian or bisexual – reported problems with getting a full night’s rest.” The findings were published online in the journal LGBT Health.

Related Links:

— “Gay youths are more than twice as likely to have sleep trouble, study finds “Dan Avery, NBC News , April 9, 2023

Healio (4/7, VanDewater) reported, “Among people with opioid use disorder” (OUD) “and chronic pain, those with fibromyalgia had a greater risk of addiction exacerbation,” researchers concluded in a small study that “recruited 125 patients with pain and OUD.” The study revealed that people with OUD “who also had fibromyalgia were more likely to have pain-related exacerbation of their addiction compared with people who had chronic pain without fibromyalgia,” according to findings published online in the journal Pain.

Related Links:

— “Fibromyalgia-related pain may exacerbate opioid addiction “Kalie VanDewater, Healio, April 7, 2023

Healio (4/7, Liptak) reported, “Nearly half of people living with mood disorders such as anxiety and depression after stroke did not receive mental health treatment, and those being treated tend to only receive medication,” investigators concluded in a study that “analyzed 7,214 patients with stroke from the Australian Stroke Clinical Registry.” The findings were published online March 23 ahead of print in the journal Stroke.

Related Links:

— “Nearly half of patients with stroke live with mood disorders, often untreated “Holly Liptak, Healio, April 7, 2023

According to Medscape (4/6, Yasgur, Subscription Publication), three review “studies provide new insight into the growing problem of gaming disorder…including the condition’s genesis, effective treatments, and” also “the need for a greater focus on recovery.” The studies include a review article published in the April issue of the journal Comprehensive Psychiatry, a seven-study systematic review published online Feb. 6 in the journal Frontiers in Psychiatry, and a 47-study systematic review published online March 14 in the Journal of Behavioral Addictions.

Related Links:

— Medscape (requires login and subscription)

Healio (4/6) reports, “Medicare beneficiaries using telehealth services for opioid use disorder” (OUD) “during the COVID-19 pandemic had a 33% lower risk for fatal drug overdose compared with beneficiaries receiving no treatment,” investigators concluded in a study that “identified 105,162 beneficiaries who began OUD-related care from March 2019 to August 2019 – deemed the pre-pandemic cohort – and 70,479 beneficiaries who initiated care from March 2020 to August 2020 – deemed the pandemic cohort.” Next, “each cohort was followed until the February following treatment initiation.” The findings were published online March 29 in a brief report in JAMA Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Telehealth services for opioid addiction reduced overdose deaths during COVID-19 pandemic “Kalie VanDewater, Healio, April 6, 2023

CNN (4/5, McPhillips) reports, “A record number of people are dying from firearm injuries in the U.S., and new research suggests that shootings are becoming more lethal, too.” Data show that “about 57% of firearm fatalities in 2021 occurred at the scene of the shooting, up 9% since 1999.” In “this analysis, researchers used data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and excluded suicides and other self-inflicted firearm injuries.” A change “in the type of firearms that are being bought and used is a key factor making shootings more lethal, experts say.” The findings were published in JAMA Surgery.

Related Links:

— “Gun violence in the US has become more lethal, research suggests ” Deidre McPhillips, CNN, April 5, 2023