Psychiatric News (11/11) reports, “More than 8% of older veterans have subthreshold posttraumatic stress disorder (clinically significant PTSD symptoms below the threshold for a diagnosis),” researchers concluded after analyzing “data from 3,001 U.S. veterans aged 60 years or older who participated in the National Health and Resilience in Veterans Study between November 2019 and March 2020.” Participants “were assessed using the PTSD Checklist for DSM-5, the Life Events Checklist for DSM-5 (for trauma exposure), and other measures.” The findings were published online Oct. 29 in the American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Subthreshold PTSD Affects More Than 8% of Older Veterans, Psychiatric News, November 11, 2021

HealthDay (11/10, Preidt, Mundell) reports research indicates that “the placebo effect could help drive antidepressants’ effects against anxiety disorders.” The 27-patient study involving brain scans revealed that those “with social anxieties who were assured that antidepressants would help them were much more likely to feel better than those who didn’t receive such assurances, despite receiving exactly the same treatment.” The findings were published online Nov. 3 in the journal Translational Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Placebo Effect Plays Big Role in Antidepressant’s Impact on Anxiety: Study “Robert Preidt, HealthDay, November 10, 2021

Healio (11/10, Gramigna) reports, “Substance use disorders appeared to increase excess mortality among patients with eating disorders, according to results of a nationwide register-based retrospective cohort study.” In a study aimed at examining “the link between AUDs/other SUDs and mortality in anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa and unspecified eating disorder compared with matched control participants,” researchers “analyzed data of 20,759 patients with eating disorders and 83,036 matched control participants included in Danish nationwide registers.” They found that “results showed increased risk for all-cause mortality among patients who abused alcohol and/or cannabis or hard drugs alone or combined with alcohol and/or cannabis.” Furthermore, “controls with SUDs had increased risk for all-cause mortality vs. those without SUDs, although to a much lesser degree than patients with an eating disorder and SUD.” The study was published in the American Journal of Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Substance use risk factor for excess mortality in patients with eating disorders “Joe Gramigna, Healio, November 10, 2021

Healio (11/10, VanDeWater) reports, “A survey of more than 1,000 U.S. adults” that was “conducted by HealthyWomen and sponsored by Sage Therapeutics” revealed that “maternal mental health is not appropriately managed in the 12 weeks after birth.” The survey found that while “76% of pregnant women made a birth plan…only 21% focused on their own mental health after the baby’s birth in their plan.” Click here to read an Oct. 26 press release detailing more about the survey.

Related Links:

— “Survey reveals postpartum mental health often goes unaddressed “Kalie VanDewater, Healio, November 10, 2021

Kaiser Health News (11/10, Andrews) reports, “In its 2021 Employer Health Benefits Survey, released” Nov. 10, the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) “found that many employers have ramped up mental health and other benefits to provide support for their workers during uncertain times” as the COVID-19 pandemic continues. The survey also revealed that “the proportion of employers offering health insurance to their workers remained steady, and increases for health insurance premiums and out-of-pocket health expenses were moderate, in line with the rise in pay,” while “deductibles were largely unchanged from the previous two years.”

Related Links:

— “As Workers Struggle With Pandemic’s Impact, Employers Expand Mental Health Benefits “Michelle Andrews, Kaiser Health News , November 10, 2021

HealthDay (11/9, Preidt) reports, “More than two-thirds of Americans would be willing to try alternatives to prescription opioids to control pain after surgery, a new survey shows.” According to HealthDay, “The survey of more than 2,000 U.S. adults aged 18 and older found that four out of five believe opioids are necessary to manage pain after surgery, and 65% are more worried about managing their pain than about the potential risk of opioid addiction,” while “68% said they would be willing to try opioid-free pain management after surgery.” The findings were announced in an Orlando Health news release.

Related Links:

— “Most Americans Would Skip Opioids After Surgery If They Could: Survey “Robert Preidt, HealthDay, November 9, 2021

Psychiatric News (11/9) reports, “Adults who identify as lesbian, gay, or bisexual are more likely to report suicidal thoughts, plans, and attempts than those who identify as heterosexual, regardless of their age, gender, and race/ethnicity,” researchers concluded after analyzing data from the National Survey of Drug Use and Health on “191,954 adults, of whom 14,693 identified as lesbian, gay, or bisexual.” The findings were published online Nov. 8 in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

Related Links:

— “Report Examines Suicide Risk Among Adults Who Identify as Sexual Minorities, Psychiatric News, November 9, 2021

Healio (11/9, Gramigna) reports, “Researchers reported an increase in prenatal hospitalizations involving cannabis use disorder [CUD] between 2010 and 2018,” after conducting a study that sought “to investigate the prevalence of co-occurring psychiatric and medical conditions among 20,914,591 U.S. pregnant individuals (mean age, 28.24 years) hospitalized with and without CUD by concomitant” substance use disorders. The findings were published online Nov. 3 in JAMA Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Prenatal hospitalizations involving cannabis use disorder increased in recent years “Joe Gramigna, Healio, November 9, 2021

HealthDay (11/8) reports, “The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) has proposed strategies to mitigate the influence of systemic racism in its recommendations in an effort to reduce health inequities and other negative effects of racism” in articles both published online in the Journal of the American Medical Association. In one article, investigators “conducted an audit to articulate the definitional and conceptual issues surrounding racism and health inequity and how these issues are currently addressed in preventive health.” In the second article, researchers “proposed iterative changes to processes, methods, and recommendations to eliminate health inequities for individuals affected by systemic racism.”

Related Links:

— “USPSTF Proposes Strategies to Mitigate Racism in Preventive Care “Physician’s Briefing Staff, HealthDay, November 8, 2021

CNN (11/8, Rogers) reports, “Young adults who experience discrimination about their bodies, race, age or sex have a greater risk of dealing with mental health problems than those who do not,” researchers concluded after analyzing “a decade’s worth of data from 1,834 American participants who had reported details about their mental and behavioral health and discrimination from when they were age 18 in 2007 to age 28 in 2017.” The study revealed that people “who faced discrimination frequently – at least a few times per month – were around 25% more likely to be diagnosed with a mental disorder and twice as likely to develop severe psychological distress than people who didn’t experience discrimination or did less often.” The findings were published online in Pediatrics. HealthDay (11/8, Foster, Preidt) reprises CNN’s coverage.

Related Links:

— “Discrimination of any kind can lead to much higher risk of mental and behavioral issues for young people, study finds ” Kristen Rogers, CNN, November 8, 2021