MedPage Today (9/15, Hlavinka) reports researchers analyzed EHRs and found that people with substance use disorders, especially opioid use disorder, are at higher risk for COVID-19. The findings were published in Molecular Psychiatry.
Related Links:
— MedPage Today (requires login and subscription)
Healio (9/15, Gramigna) reports, “Suicide rates appeared to increase among United States military service members after transition to civilian life,” investigators concluded after conducting “a retrospective population-based cohort study in which they collected military service and demographic data of 1,868,970 service members who were included in the VA/Department of Defense Identity Repository.” In particular, the study team focused on people “who served on active duty in the U.S. Air Force, Army, Coast Guard, Marine Corps or Navy after Sept. 11, 2001, and who separated from active status between January 2010 and December 2017.” The findings were published online in JAMA Network Open.
Psychiatric News (9/15) reports, “Suicide rates among veterans peaked six to 12 months after they left the military, and those at higher risk included veterans who were younger, were male, had a shorter length of service, were not married, or were separated from the Marine Corps or Army,” the study revealed.
Related Links:
— “Military service member suicide rates increase after separation and vary by demographics “Joe Gramigna, Healio, September 15, 2020
Healio (9/13, Gramigna) reports “substance use is increasing among elderly patients, a population also presenting with increasing needs related to comorbid psychiatric disorders, according to” a presentation given by Olivera Bogunovic, MD, medical director of ambulatory services at Harvard Medical School’s McLean Hospital, at the Psych Congress 2020 Virtual Experience conference. Dr. Bogunovic discussed problems with alcohol, certain medications, and illicit drugs.
Related Links:
— “Older patients at increased risk for substance use, comorbid psychiatric disorders “Joe Gramigna, Healio, September 13, 2020
Psychiatric News (9/11) reported, “E-cigarette use, also known as vaping, may be associated with an increased risk of sleep deprivation in young adults aged 18 to 24 years even after they quit,” investigators concluded after analyzing “data from 18,945 young adults who participated in the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System…in 2017 and 2018.” The findings were published online in the journal Addictive Behaviors.
Related Links:
— “E-Cigarette Use Tied to Sleep Deprivation in Young Adults Psychiatric News, September 11, 2020
The AP (9/11, Mumphrey, Kelleher) reported “the coronavirus pandemic has taken a harsh toll on the mental health of young Americans, according to” the latest COVID Response Tracking Study conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago. According to the poll, 56% of Americans between the ages of 18 and 34 “say they have at least sometimes felt isolated in the past month, compared with about 4 in 10 older Americans.” In addition, 25% “of young adults rate their mental health as fair or poor, compared with 13% of older adults, while 56% of older adults say their mental health is excellent or very good, compared with just 39% of young adults.”
Forbes (9/11, Durkee) reports that back in April, a poll from the APA “found that 36% of Americans believed the pandemic had taken a ‘serious toll’ on their mental health, while an August survey from the Commonwealth Fund found that approximately one-third of Americans reported negative mental health issues – far more than in the other countries surveyed.”
Related Links:
— “Poll: Pandemic takes toll on mental health of young adults “Cheyanne Mumphrey and Jennifer Sinco Kellehe, AP, September 11, 2020
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