HealthDay (3/19, Preidt) reported that “the pandemic is turning what should be a joyful time for pregnant women into a stress-filled experience,” and “fears that their infants might catch COVID-19 is one of the main reasons anxiety levels are soaring, a new survey finds.” The survey results, published recently in the journal BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth, “showed that 52% of pregnant women and 49% of postpartum women worried about their babies contracting COVID-19, and 46% had sought additional information about COVID-19 protocols from the hospital where they planned to deliver, or had delivered, their babies.”

Related Links:

— “Pandemic Has Pregnant Women ‘Really Stressed,’ Survey Shows “Robert Preidt, HealthDay, March 19, 2021

HealthDay (3/19, Thompson) reported, “Preschoolers who spend a lot of time watching movies and shows on TVs and other screens are more likely to develop emotional and behavioral problems by age five,” but “despite their reputation, video games did not appear to promote any emotional problems in youngsters, researchers concluded” in a study that “examined data on nearly 700 children participating in a long-term pediatric health study in Finland.” The study revealed that “high levels of screen time at the age of 1.5 years is related to peer problems at five years, and that high levels of screen time is related to more psychosocial problems at five years, including emotional and behavioral symptoms as well as attention difficulties and hyperactivity.” The findings were published March 17 in the journal BMJ Open.

Related Links:

— “Does Too Much ‘Screen Time’ Have Your Preschooler Acting Out? “Dennis Thompson, HealthDay, March 19, 2021

HealthDay (3/19, Murez) reported, “Among those who are facing fear, isolation and loss during the pandemic are people who experience eating disorders, such as anorexia, bulimia and binge eating, according to recent research from Anglia Ruskin University in Cambridge, England.” Researchers “reconnected with participants from a 2019 study on body dysmorphia, exercise addiction and eating disorders, to find out how COVID-19 restrictions in 2020 may have impacted their eating disorders.” Participants answered questions that were “part of the eating attitudes test, called EAT-26,” and their “scores significantly increased in 2020, post-lockdown, compared to 2019. This suggested higher levels of eating behaviors such as anorexia and bulimia, according to the study authors.” The findings were published in the April issue of the journal Psychiatry Research.

Related Links:

— “Lockdowns Are Putting People With Eating Disorders in Crisis “Cara Murez, HealthDay, March 19, 2021

Healio (3/19, Gramigna) reports, “The COVID-19 pandemic has affected daily stressors, coping and suicidal ideation among psychiatrically hospitalized youth, according to a presentation at the Anxiety and Depression Association of America annual conference.” Alexandra H. Bettis, PhD, assistant professor in the department of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, said, “Suddenly, some of the things that kids might typically do to manage stress might be restricted or no longer available to them, so COVID-19 could have pretty dramatic impacts on how kids are able to access different skills that maybe they typically would use in the face of stress.”

Related Links:

— “Emphasizing coping methods may help at-risk youth navigate COVID-19 pandemic “Joe Gramigna, Healio, March 19, 2021

HCPlive (3/18, Walter) reports, “Traumatic events that yield post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) might also increase the risk of ischemic heart disease…for women” veterans, investigators concluded in a study that included “132,923 individuals…with PTSD and 265,846 never diagnosed with PTSD.” The findings were published online in JAMA Cardiology.

Related Links:

— “PTSD Linked to Increased Risk of Ischemic Heart Disease in Women Veterans “Kenny Walter, HCPlive, March 18, 2021

HCPlive (3/18, Walter) reports research “commissioned by the US Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) highlights a rise in drug overdoses over the last half a decade, particularly in urban areas.” Investigators from the CDC’s “National Center for Health Statistics, Division of Analysis and Epidemiology examined recent mortality data from the National Vital Statistics System…to further illuminate urban-rural differences in drug overdose death rates for all drugs and by selected types of opioids and stimulants.” The study also found “urban and rural differences in trends based on overdose deaths caused by different types of opioids.” The findings (PDF) were published online in NCHS Data Brief No. 403.

Related Links:

— “CDC Report Shows Troubling Opioid Overdose Trends “Kenny Walter, HCPlive, March 18, 2021

Healio (3/18, Gramigna) reports, “Trauma exposure appeared significantly associated with obsessive-compulsive symptoms among a community sample,” researchers concluded after analyzing “data included in the restricted access National Comorbidity Survey Replication…dataset,” the first part of which “included 9,282 participants who comprised a nationally representative sample aged 18 to 74 years,” and the second part of which “included 5,692 participants,” of whom “a total of 1,808 were assessed for OCD.” The findings were presented at the Anxiety and Depression Association of America annual conference (virtual).

Related Links:

— “People with trauma exposure at increased risk for obsessive-compulsive symptoms “Joe Gramigna, Healio, March 18, 2021

Psychiatric News (3/18) reports, “In response to the shooting of eight people, including six women of Asian descent, at spas in Georgia on” March 16, the American Psychiatric Association (APA) “issued a statement condemning the act and expressing support for Asian American and Pacific Islander communities.” In a media release, APA President Jeffrey Geller, MD, MPH, stated, “This year has seen a significant increase in racism and xenophobia against Asian Americans, and it is unacceptable and harmful.” APA CEO and Medical Director Saul Levin, MD, MPA, said, “The tragedy that occurred in Georgia is becoming far too familiar.” Dr. Levin added, “We must be mindful that the mental health impacts of mass shootings are far reaching, touching families, communities, and the nation as a whole.”

Related Links:

— “APA Condemns Violence Against Asian Americans in Georgia, Psychiatric News, March 18, 2021

Bloomberg Law (3/17, Wille, Subscription Publication) reports, “The parents of a four-year-old autistic child who sued their health plan for categorically excluding an autism treatment called applied behavioral analysis can challenge this practice under the Affordable Care Act’s anti-discrimination rule but not federal benefits or mental health parity law,” according to Judge Tanya Walton Pratt of the Southern District of Indiana. Judge Pratt concluded the “plan’s ‘blanket exclusion’ for coverage of autism spectrum disorder treatments is valid under the federal Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act, because it doesn’t draw impermissible distinctions between mental health treatments and medical and surgical treatments.”

Related Links:

— “Family’s Challenge to Blanket Autism Coverage Exclusion Trimmed “Jacklyn Wille, Bloomberg Law, March 17, 2021

Healio (3/17, Vecchione) reports, “Stroke survivors may be more likely to attempt or die by suicide than people who have not had a stroke,” investigators concluded after analyzing data from “23 studies that included more than two million stroke survivors (mean age, 64 years; 52% women), of whom 5,563 attempted suicide or died by suicide.” The findings of the systematic review and meta-analysis were presented at the American Stroke Association’s virtual International Stroke Conference and published simultaneously online March 11 in the journal Stroke.

Related Links:

— “Suicide risk elevated among stroke survivors “Anthony Vecchione, Healio, March 17, 2021