HCPlive (7/21, Walter) reports research indicates that “high school students using cannabis as a sleep aid are more prone to cannabis dependency, binge drinking, and psychiatric symptoms, such as depression and anxiety.” Investigators came to that conclusion after examining data on “407 9-11 graders at an urban Northeastern US public high school.” The findings were published online ahead of print in the November issue of the journal Addictive Behaviors.

Related Links:

— “Cannabis Use as a Sleep Aid Linked to Dependency for High School Students “Kenny Walter, HCPliv, July 21, 2022

According to the AP (7/21, Goldberg), “federal officials are grappling with how local teams staffing the national 988 lines will contend with suspicion of the medical establishment” among Black communities. This is important, because “improper detentions and other issues contribute to what some experts say is an underutilization of mental health services.” HHS is now “urging partners in each community to communicate the distinction between 911 and 988.” Just “one in three African-Americans who need mental healthcare receives it, according to the American Psychiatric Association.”

Related Links:

— “Mistrust lingers in Black communities amid 988 launch “Michael Goldberg, AP, July 21, 2022

Healio (7/20, Herpen) reports, “The risk of suicide mortality was similar in patients treated with electroconvulsive therapy [ECT] and matched controls, with no evidence that the therapy decreased risk of death by suicide,” investigators concluded after analyzing “electronic medical record data from the Department of Veterans Affairs health system, between 2000 and 2017, to include 5,157 index courses of ECT therapy, along with 10,097 matched controls who did not receive ECT.” The findings were published online April 13 in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “ECT did not decrease risk for death by suicide compared with other mental health care “Robert Herpen, Healio, July 20, 2022

In light of the nationwide launch of the 988 suicide hotline, STAT (7/20, Gaffney) reports that even though “some call centers said they didn’t see any change in volume with the launch of the new number, the Department of Health and Human Services expects the volume of calls to the national line to double in the first full year,” a surge that “could tax a mental healthcare system that’s already severely strained, and direly underfunded.” The article spotlights volunteers at Call2Talk, a Framingham, MA-based call center handling 988 calls.

Related Links:

— “At a 988 call center, volunteers embrace a new number while providing familiar hope “Theresa Gaffney, STAT, July 21, 2022

Psychiatric News (7/19) reports, “A policy shift early in the pandemic from requiring people with opioid use disorder [OUD] to report daily to clinics for methadone to sending stable patients home with a 28-day supply of the medication did not appear to lead to increased overdose deaths involving methadone relative to overdose deaths involving other substances,” researchers concluded. Instead, “the percentage of overdose deaths involving methadone fell after March 2020, while overdose deaths that did not involve methadone continued to rise.” Investigators arrived at these conclusions after analyzing “monthly drug overdose deaths that took place from January 2019 to August 2021, as recorded in the CDC’s National Vital Statistics System.” The findings were published online July 13 in a research letter in JAMA Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Study Points to Benefit of Removing Barriers to Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder, Psychiatric News, July 19, 2022

NBC News (7/19, Edwards) reports, “From 2019 to 2020, the CDC said, the rate of fatal drug overdoses rose by 30% overall, from 21.6 deaths per 100,000 people in 2019 to 28.3 deaths per 100,000 in 2020. Most deaths were due to illicit fentanyl, a powerful synthetic opioid.” The data indicate a disparity in outcomes by ethnicity; the death rate among Black Americans “increased most dramatically,” by 44%, while for “American Indian and Alaska Native populations, the rate increased by 39%.”

Also reporting are the Wall Street Journal (7/19, Wernau, Subscription Publication) and USA Today (7/19, Hassanein).

Related Links:

— “Overdose death rate increased by 30% in 2020, a ‘staggering’ rise ” Erika Edwards, NBC News, July 19, 2022

Healio (7/18, Downey) reports, “Higher levels of loneliness reported in children prior to the age of 12 years predicted alcohol-related issues emerging in adulthood, researchers reported” in a 310-university student study, the findings of which were published online ahead of print in the December issue of the journal Addictive Behaviors Reports.

Related Links:

— “Childhood loneliness predicts increased alcohol use later in life “Ken Downey Jr., Healio, July 18, 2022

Psychiatric News (7/18) reports, “Healthcare workers who reported experiencing high levels of stress about child care during the first months of the COVID-19 pandemic were more likely to report anxiety, depression, and burnout compared with those without child care stress,” investigators concluded after examining survey data from “the 14-item Coping with COVID survey of 58,408 healthcare workers (including 15,766 physicians and 11,409 nurses), conducted between April and December 2020.” The study also revealed that healthcare workers “experiencing such stress were also more likely to report an intent to reduce their hours or leave their position than those without child care stress.” The findings were published online July 18 in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “Child Care Stress Among Health Care Workers Associated With Burnout, Intent to Reduce Hours, Psychiatric News, July 18, 2022

Dermatology Advisor (7/15, Stong) reported, “Patients with atopic dermatitis (AD) have fluctuating symptoms of depression over time, and those with severe AD have the highest risk for depressive symptoms, investigators” concluded in a study that included “695 adult patients.” The findings were published online ahead of print in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology.

Related Links:

— “Severe Atopic Dermatitis Tied to Poor Mental Health “Colby Stong, Dermatology Advisor, July 15, 2022

The Hill (7/15, Breslin) reported a “study by the Coalition for Applied Modeling for Prevention (CAMP) and funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) highlights the colossal rise in injection drug use…in the United States in recent years.” The study showed that “the most recent data, from 2018, estimated that approximately 4 million Americans injected drugs,” a “five-fold increase from the last approximation, in 2011.” The research also found that “the burden of fatal and nonfatal overdoses among those who inject drugs has…gone up sharply.”

Related Links:

— “CDC study shows meteoric rise in number of Americans injecting drugs “Maureen Breslin, The Hill, July 15, 2022