Healio (9/11, Gramigna) reported “psychiatrists play an important role in the care of transgender individuals with mental illness and substance use disorders, according to a” presentation given by Dan Karasic, MD, clinical professor of psychiatry at University of California-San Francisco at the Psych Congress 2020 Virtual Experience conference. In the presentation, Dr. Karasic also “provided an overview of the importance of updated standards set to be released in the coming World Professional Association for Transgender Health…Standards of Care Version 8.”

Related Links:

— “Transgender individuals with mental illness benefit from modernized psychiatric care “Joe Gramigna, Healio, September 11, 2020

The Washington Post (9/9, Romm) reports people who rely on USPS for prescription drugs “may have experienced ‘significant’ delays in their deliveries, according to a” report from Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Robert P. Casey Jr. (D-PA). The report accused Postmaster General Louis DeJoy of placing the “health of millions of Americans” at risk.

USA Today (9/9, Wu) reports Warren and Casey “said some of the nation’s largest pharmacies told them they were experiencing, on average, delivery delays of 18-32%, meaning deliveries that would normally take 1-2 days would instead take 3-4 days.” The senators also said the delays could pose “serious health risks to millions of Americans and (increase) costs for consumers and taxpayers.”

The AP (9/9, Daly, Izaguirre) says the report conflicts with claims made by DeJoy that the changes he implemented “should not have impacted anybody.”

CNN (9/9, Holmes, Cole) and The Hill (9/9, Wise) also cover the story.

Related Links:

— “Patients may have seen ‘significant’ delays in medicine deliveries by USPS, Senate report finds “Tony Romm, The Washington Post, September 9, 2020

HealthDay (9/9, Norton) reports, “A growing number of Americans may be having serious reactions after taking phenibut – an unapproved anxiety” treatment “sold in some dietary supplements,” investigators concluded in a study that examined “calls to U.S. poison control centers.” Starting in 2015, investigators found “a sharp rise” in such calls, “going from a handful of calls each year to between 300 and 400 in 2018 and 2019.” What’s more, “the effects were sometimes life-threatening or fatal, said” one of the researchers. The findings were published online Sept. 4 in the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

Related Links:

— “Dangerous Abuse of Anxiety Drug Phenibut Is on the Rise “Amy Norton, HealthDay, September 9, 2020

MedPage Today (9/9, Hlavinka) reports that diagnoses of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (AD/HD) “were more common in Black people than for people of other races/ethnicities,” investigators concluded in a meta-analysis that revealed “in 21 U.S. studies conducted from 1979-2020, the pooled prevalence of” AD/HD “was 14.54% for Black adults and children and 13.87% for Black children only.” In comparison, “estimates for” AD/HD “prevalence in all races/ethnicities hover around 10% in children and are lower in adults.” The findings were published online Sept. 9 in JAMA Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— MedPage Today (requires login and subscription)

Psychiatric News (9/8) reports that with the increasing “number of mental health apps available for download…psychiatrists are likely to receive questions from patients on the risks and benefits of these products.” Now, “to help psychiatrists and other mental health professionals when selecting apps,” the American Psychiatric Association “has created the APA App Advisor,” which is “a website that guides users through questions to consider when evaluating mental health apps.”

Related Links:

— “Considering Mental Health Apps? APA App Advisor Can Help, Psychiatric News , September 8, 2020

The New York Times (9/9, Reynolds) reports, “Exercise makes it easier to bounce back from too much stress, according to a fascinating new study with mice.” The study “finds that regular exercise increases the levels of a chemical in the animals’ brains that helps them remain psychologically resilient and plucky, even when their lives seem suddenly strange, intimidating and filled with threats.” While “the study involved mice…it is likely to have implications for our species, too, as we face the stress and discombobulation of the ongoing pandemic and today’s political and social disruptions.” The study was published in August in the Journal of Neuroscience.

Related Links:

— “Exercise May Make It Easier to Bounce Back From Stress “Gretchen Reynolds, The New York Times, September 9, 2020

The Wall Street Journal (9/8, Kamp, Campo-Flores, Subscription Publication) reports the COVID-19 pandemic has worsened the opioid crisis with deaths from opioid overdoses continuing to increase in many parts of the US.

Related Links:

— “The Opioid Crisis, Already Serious, Has Intensified During Coronavirus Pandemic “Jon Kamp and Arian Campo-Flores, The Wall Street Journal, September 8, 2020

NPR (9/8, Noguchi) reports “eating disorders are thriving during the” current COVID-19 pandemic. In recent months, “hotline calls to the National Eating Disorders Association are up 70-80%.” For some people, “eating is a form of control – a coping mechanism tied to stress.” Eating disorders also pose a “lethal threat,” having “the second-highest mortality rate of any psychiatric diagnosis – outranked only by opioid use disorder.”

Related Links:

— “Eating Disorders Thrive In Anxious Times, And Pose A Lethal Threat “Yuki Noguchi, NPR, September 8, 2020

USA Today (9/5, Ayres) reported, “During the pandemic, doctors in many parts of the country have connected with their patients online instead of in person for everyone’s safety.” Those “patients who had adapted to connecting to family and friends via video smoothly transitioned to seeing their physicians that way too, minimizing a lot of potential technical difficulties.” According to USA Today, “This situational advance of telemedicine has left many doctors and patients hoping it will continue to be an option even when life returns to ‘normal.’”

Related Links:

— “During COVID-19, many doctors and patients are using telehealth to keep connected “Amy Sinatra Ayres, USA Today, September 5, 2020

The New York Times (9/7, Goldberg) reports, “Early on in the pandemic, a pervasive myth among patients and some health authorities was the idea that Covid-19 was a short-term illness.” It’s only been “in recent months” that “more attention [has] been given to long-haulers.” For instance, the Times adds that “in online support groups like Body Politic and Survivor Corps, long-haulers have produced informal surveys and reports to study their course of illness,” and in one support group, “dozens wrote that their months of illness have contributed to anxiety and depression, exacerbated by the difficulties of accessing medical services and disruptions to their work, social and exercise routines.”

Related Links:

— “For Long-Haulers, Covid-19 Takes a Toll on Mind as Well as Body “Emma Goldberg, The New York Times, September 7, 2020