USA Today (11/1, Rodriguez) reports research indicates “recreational screen time for teens skyrocketed” throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. According to USA Today, “using data from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development Study, a large, long-term study of brain development,” investigators “compared 5,412 participants’ screen time from 2016 to their screen time in May 2020” and found “screen time outside of virtual school among teenagers doubled from pre-pandemic estimates of 3.8 hours per day to 7.7 hours.” The findings were published Monday in JAMA Pediatrics.

Related Links:

— “Screen time among teenagers during COVID more than doubled outside of virtual school, study finds “Adrianna Rodriguez, USA TODAY, November 1, 2021

HCPlive (11/1, Walter) reports, “While more and more prediction models for psychiatric disorders are being developed, particularly for pediatric patients, the results still do not show the models are ready for clinical use,” investigators concluded after conducting a 100-study “systematic review of new prediction models for child and adolescent mental health.” The findings were published online Sept. 24 in JCCP Advances.

Related Links:

— “Pediatric Psychiatric Forecasting Models Not Ready For Clinical Use “Kenny Walter, HCPlive, November 1, 2021

Healio (11/1, Gramigna) reports, “Patients with severe mental illness, particularly those with schizophrenia who are insured by Medicaid, have significant social risk factors that may adversely affect overall health,” investigators concluded after analyzing “registry data of 1,038,075 commercial and 1,234,371 Medicaid-managed care patients aged 18 years or older between July 1, 2016, and Dec. 31, 2018.” The findings were presented at the Psych Congress 2021.

Related Links:

— “Social determinants of health adversely affect outcomes in severe mental illness “Joe Gramigna, Healio, November 1, 2021

The New York Times (10/29, Mueller) reported, “A new studyby the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests that vaccination provides stronger and more reliable protection against the coronavirus than a past infection does, the agency said.” Unvaccinated individuals “who had previously recovered from a coronavirus infection were five times as likely to get COVID as people who had received both shots of the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccines, the CDC said.”

Related Links:

— “Vaccination offers more protection against Covid than prior infection, a C.D.C. study suggests “Benjamin Mueller, The New York Times, October 29, 2021

Healio (10/29, Gramigna) reported, “Untreated perinatal anxiety disorders and related stress or depression among mothers pose risks to offspring, according to a” virtual presentation given at the Psych Congress by Kimberly Brandt, DO, PMH-C, “a perinatal psychiatrist at the University of Missouri School of Medicine.” In her presentation, Dr. Brandt “said the benefits of treating these disorders outweigh potential risks.” That is because “untreated anxiety and depression, or both, can cause increased risk for early labor, decreased birth weight, increased reactivity to stress and some fetal brain structural changes,” Dr. Brandt said.

Related Links:

— “Benefits of treating perinatal anxiety disorders ‘greatly outweigh’ risks “Joe Gramigna, Healio,October 29, 2021

MedPage Today (10/27, Basen) reports, “Most healthcare workers experience violence in emergency departments (EDs), but they seldomly report it to anyone, according to Mayo Clinic researchers.” MedPage Today adds, “Over 6 months prior to being surveyed, 72% of healthcare workers and other ED staff said they had personally experienced violence (71% verbal abuse and 31% physical assault), Sarayna McGuire, MD…reported in a series of three studies at the American College of Emergency Physicians annual meeting.”

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— MedPage Today (requires login and subscription)

HealthDay (10/28) reports, “Women’s symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) may vary with their menstrual cycle, which could have implications for diagnosis and treatment, researchers say.” The “study included 40 women between 18 and 33 years of age who had PTSD after experiencing or witnessing a traumatic event, such as sexual violence or a serious injury.” The findings [pdf] were published online in the journal Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy.

MedPage Today (10/28, Grant) reports that according to researchers, “lower estradiol was associated with a higher number of total trauma symptoms (rs = -0.36, P=0.023), more re-experiencing symptoms (rs = -0.32, P=0.046), and more avoidance symptoms (rs = -0.40, P=0.010) that were also more severe (rs = -0.34, P=0.034).” Furthermore, “These findings were consistent with past research, which found links between lower estradiol levels and a heightened activation of the brain’s limbic areas, greater fear responses, and the presence of intrusive memories.”

Related Links:

— “PTSD Symptoms May Vary Throughout Menstrual Cycle: Study ” Robert Preidt, HealthDay, October 28, 2021

The Washington Post (10/27, Bernstein) reports, “Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra outlined the Biden administration’s strategy for curbing drug overdoses Wednesday, committing more federal support for harm reduction techniques such as distribution of clean syringes and test strips used to check street drugs for hidden fentanyl.” This “four-part strategy also includes measures to prevent drug addiction, in part by continuing to reduce the inappropriate prescribing of opioids; expand medication-based treatment, which research has shown to be the most effective approach; and improve support for people recovering from substance use disorder.”

The Hill (10/27, Coleman) says this new “strategy comes as HHS released a report finding more than 840,000 people died from drug overdoses in the U.S. between 1999 and 2019, including about 93,000 last year during the COVID-19 pandemic when overdose fatalities rose.” In this report, “HHS labels confronting these overdose deaths as ‘a top priority’ for the department.”

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— “The Washington Post (requires login and subscription)

Healio (10/27, Gramigna) reports, “Combat exposure appeared linked to increased risk for suicide attempt among military personnel,” but “mental disorders, such as PTSD and/or depression, fully mediated this link,” investigators concluded in a study that analyzed “data of 12,218 Danish army military personnel who returned from deployment in international missions between 1998 and 2016 and who completed a questionnaire after deployment” in which “participants self-reported data on perceived exposure to danger.” The findings were published online Oct. 12 in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Suicide attempt more common in military personnel with combat exposure “Joe Gramigna, Healio, October 27, 2021

Psychiatric News (10/27) reports, “People who frequently use cannabis and/or those with cannabis use disorder are more likely to report having been diagnosed with a psychotic disorder than those with no past-year cannabis use,” researchers concluded “based on data collected from more than 79,000 people during two waves of NIAAA’s National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions…conducted 10 years apart.” The study also revealed evidence suggesting “psychotic disorders in the adult U.S. population rose from 2001-2002 to 2012-2013.” The findings were published online Oct. 14 in the American Journal of Psychiatry, a publication of the American Psychiatric Association.

Related Links:

— “Frequent Use of Cannabis Linked to Psychotic Disorders, Report Finds, Psychiatric News, October 27, 2021