HCPlive (12/15, Alicea) reports research indicates that “preschool children with asthma and food allergies” may “be at increased risk of having concurrent mental health problems.” Investigators arrived at this conclusion after having “assessed data from 4649 children, of which slightly more than half (50.3%) were over the age of five.” The findings were published online Dec. 7 in Acta Paediatrica.

Related Links:

— “Asthma, Allergies Associated with Increased Risk for Mental Health Issues “Jonathan Alicea, HCPlive, December 15, 2020

Medscape (12/14, Brooks, Subscription Publication) reports, “Middle-aged women with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and comorbid depression have a nearly fourfold increased risk for early death from a variety of causes in comparison with their peers who do not have those conditions,” investigators concluded in a study that included “more than 51,000 mostly White women from the Nurses Health Study II who were followed for nine years (2008 to 2017).” The findings were published online in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— Medscape (requires login and subscription)

Healio (12/14, Gramigna) reports, “Individuals with schizophrenia spectrum disorders or autism spectrum disorders [ASD] may have similar levels of social cognitive impairment,” investigators concluded in “qualitative and quantitative analyses” that “included 36 and 33 studies, respectively.” The findings of the systematic review and meta-analysis were published online Dec. 8 in JAMA Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Schizophrenia, autism spectrum disorders have similar social cognitive impairment levels “Joe Gramigna, Healio, December 14, 2020

HealthDay (12/14, Norton) reports, “Young adults who spend hours a day on social media are at heightened risk of developing depression in the near future,” investigators concluded in a study that “included nearly 1,000 adults aged 18 to 30 who were depression-free at the outset, based on a standard questionnaire.” Participants “all reported on their usual social media time and were assessed for depression again six months later.” The study revealed that “depression risk rose in tandem with time spent on social media.” The findings were published online Dec. 10 in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

Related Links:

— “Too Much Social Media Time Could Raise Risk of Depression “Amy Norton, HealthDay, December 14, 2020

Psychiatric News (12/11) reported, “Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) may experience an acute exacerbation of their illness if they have depression and/or anxiety,” investigators concluded in a study involving “504 adults with COPD” who visited a hospital’s pulmonary clinic. The study revealed that “the risk of acute exacerbation was 60% higher in patients with anxiety and/or depression.” The findings were published online Dec. 8 in the Journal of Affective Disorders.

Related Links:

— “Anxiety, Depression May Increase Risk of Acute Exacerbation in COPD, Psychiatric News, December 11, 2020

Healio (12/11, Burba) reported, “Sequential integration of psychotherapy following response to acute-phase pharmacotherapy was associated with a reduced risk for relapse in patients with major depressive disorder [MDD],” investigators concluded in a 17-study, 2,283-participant systematic review and meta-analysis. The findings were published online Nov. 25 in JAMA Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Psychotherapy sequential integration may reduce risk for MDD relapse “Kate Burba, Healio, December 11, 2020

Healio (12/10, Weller) reports, “Adults aged 50 years or older reported lower levels of social isolation and loneliness after six months of participation in a community-based exercise program,” investigators concluded. The findings of the 382-participant study were published online Oct. 15 in the American Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Community exercise classes reduce loneliness, social isolation among older adults “Madison Weller, Healio, December 10, 2020

According to Healio (12/10, Michael), even though “physician burnout is associated with increased medical errors, it is not associated with an increased risk for suicidal ideation after adjusting for depression,” investigators concluded in a study that included responses from “1,354 respondents…of whom 67.4% were non-primary care physicians, 69% were attending physicians and 60.9% were aged younger than 45 years.” The findings were published online in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “Suicidal ideation in physicians linked to depression, not burnout “Erin Michael, Healio, December 10, 2020

Healio (12/10, Burba) reports, “Children and adolescents with obsessive-compulsive disorder [OCD] have experienced worsened symptoms amid the COVID-19 pandemic,” investigators concluded in a study that “distributed a questionnaire to a clinical group of 65 newly diagnosed patients at a specialized OCD clinic, as well as to a survey group of 37 previously diagnosed patients who completed primary treatment.” All participants ranged in age from seven to 21. The findings were published online Oct. 20 in BMC Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated OCD symptoms in children and adolescents “Kate Burba, Healio, December 10, 2020

HealthDay (12/9) reports, “COVID-19 may be behind a concerning rise in the number of women suffering anxiety and depression before and soon after childbirth, a new study says.” Researchers “surveyed more than 1,100 pregnant and postpartum women between May 21 and Aug. 17,” and “found that 36%, or more than 1 in 3, had significant levels of depression,” while “prior to the pandemic, rates of perinatal depression were about 15% to 20%.” The research was published online in Psychiatry Research.

Related Links:

— “COVID Fuels Depression Among Pregnant Women, New Moms “Cara Murez, HealthDay, December 9, 2020