CNN (2/2, Marples) reports a study by the Harvard School of Dental Medicine found “34% of adults ages 18 to 25 misused their psychoactive medications,” which include “opioids, stimulants, tranquilizers and sedatives.” The analysis of “surveys of U.S. youth and young adults taken between 2015 and 2018” also found “over 20% of youth ages 12 to 17 who took psychoactive medications were also found to be misusing these drugs.” The findings were published Tuesday in the British Medical Journal.

Related Links:

— “Over one-third of young adults misuse psychoactive medications, study says “Megan Marples, Megan Marples, February 2, 2021

Healio (2/2, Downey) reports, “Cannabis use disorder was associated with self-harm, all-cause mortality, unintentional overdose death and homicide among youth with mood disorders,” investigators concluded after examining data on “204,780 youths aged between 10 and 24 years with a diagnosis of a mood disorder between July 1, 2010, and Dec. 31, 2017.” The findings were published online Jan. 19 in JAMA Pediatrics.

Related Links:

— “Cannabis use disorder a risk marker for self-harm among youths with mood disorders “Ken Downey Jr., Healio, February 2, 2021

NPR (2/2, Chatterjee) reports, “An abrupt spike in suicide deaths among students in the Clark County School District has officials in the Las Vegas district wondering if pressures brought on by the coronavirus pandemic might have been part of what fueled” that rise. NPR talked to medical professionals “at hospitals in seven states across the country, and all of them reported a similar trend: More suicidal children are coming to their hospitals – in worse mental states.” Meanwhile, psychiatrists and other physicians “who work with children say the pandemic has created a perfect storm of stressors for kids,” exacerbating “an ongoing children’s mental health crisis.”

Related Links:

— “Child Psychiatrists Warn That The Pandemic May Be Driving Up Kids’ Suicide Risk “Rhitu Chatterjee, NPR, February 2, 2021

The New York Times (2/1, Blinder) reports, “College football players sustained far more concussions during practices than they did in games,” research indicates.

MedPage Today (2/1, George) reports, “College football players were more likely to have concussions and head hits during practices and preseason training rather than regular season play,” investigators concluded in “an observational study of National Collegiate Athletic Association…Division I players.” The study revealed that “in six NCAA teams across five pre-pandemic seasons, 72% of concussions and 67% of head impacts occurred during practices,” and “roughly half of all concussions occurred during preseason training, even though preseason training represented just 21% of the whole season.” The findings were published online in a brief report in JAMA Neurology.

Related Links:

— “Football Practices Pose More Concussion Risk Than Games, Study Suggests “Alan Blinder, The New York Times, February 1, 2021

NPR (1/29, Mann) reported President Biden is facing criticism for his handling of the ongoing opioid epidemic, which has received less attention during the COVID-19 pandemic. Some critics have pointed to his decision to delay guidelines that would have eased access to buprenorphine as a misstep.

Related Links:

— “With Biden Team Focused On Other Crises, Experts Say Drug Epidemic Is Exploding “Brian Mann , NPR, January 29, 2021

Healio (1/29) reported, “Risk drinking levels increased significantly from 2001 and 2002 to 2012 and 2013,” researchers concluded after using “logistic regression to analyze data of 26,655 current drinkers who were included in the 2001 to 2002 National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions (NESARC) and of 25,659 included in the 2012 to 2013 NESARCIII.” The findings were published online Jan. 21 in the American Journal of Psychiatry, a publication of the American Psychiatric Association.

Related Links:

— “WHO risk drinking levels provide metric for nonabstinent reduction, study finds “Joe Gramigna, Healio, January 29, 2021

Psychiatric News (1/29) reported, “Patients who have depression and frequently experience bouts of anger may have an increased risk of developing bipolar disorder,” investigators concluded in a study that also revealed “a link between aggression reactivity – aggressive behavior in response to feeling threatened, provoked, or frustrated – and conversion to bipolar disorder.” Researchers arrived at these conclusions after analyzing “data from 1,585 people with depression who participated in the Netherlands Study of Depression and Anxiety…a longitudinal study of adults aged 18 to 65 years.” The findings were published online Jan. 27 in the journal Depression & Anxiety.

Related Links:

— “Anger, Aggression Reactivity in Depression May Signal Risk for Converting to Bipolar Disorder, Psychiatric News, January 29, 2021

Psychiatric News (1/28) reports, “Students in China reported high rates of psychological distress during the early weeks of the COVID-19 pandemic, but wearing a face mask frequently and exercising had some protective benefits,” investigators concluded after analyzing “data from nearly 1.2 million school-aged children and adolescents living in the Guangdong province in China.” Next, the students “completed online questionnaires from March 8 to 30, 2020, which assessed mental health status using the Chinese version of the 12-item General Heath Questionnaire.” The findings were published online Jan. 26 in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “High Psychological Distress Found Among Chinese Students During Early Weeks of Pandemic, Psychiatric News, January 28, 2021

Healio (1/28, Gramigna) reports, “Frequently used neuroimaging measures did not show a discrete brain signature associated with suicidal thoughts and behaviors among youths,” researchers concluded after analyzing “data of a U.S. population-based sample of 7,994 unrelated children aged nine to 10 years who were included in the Adolescent Brain Cognitive study.” Investigators also “implemented quality control procedures and examined structural MRI data of 6,238 participants, resting state functional MRI data of 4,134 participants and task-based functional MRI data of between 4,075 and 4,608 participants.” The findings were published online Jan. 21 in the American Journal of Psychiatry, a publication of the American Psychiatric Association.

Related Links:

— “Common neuroimaging measures do not detect youths’ risk for suicidal thoughts, behaviors “Joe Gramigna, Healio, January 28, 2021

Healio (1/27, Laday) reports, “Physical inactivity confers a ‘greater than threefold increased risk’ for developing depression within the next two years among patients with systemic lupus erythematosus [SLE],” investigators concluded after analyzing data from 225 people with SLE “without baseline depression and who completed an in-person baseline assessment and at least one follow-up.” The findings were published online in the journal Arthritis Care & Research.

Related Links:

— “Physical inactivity triples risk for depression in patients with lupus “Jason Laday, Healio, January 27, 2021