The New York Times (10/28, Bakalar) reports, “Long-term exposure to noise may be linked to an increased risk for Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia,” investigators concluded after conducting “periodic interviews with 5,227 people 65 and older participating in a study on aging.” After controlling for confounding factors, researchers “found that each 10 decibel increase in community noise level was associated with a 36 percent higher likelihood of mild cognitive impairment, and a 29 percent increased risk for Alzheimer’s disease.” The findings were published online Oct. 20 in the journal Alzheimer’s & Dementia.

Related Links:

— “Long-Term Noise Exposure May Be Tied To Increased Risk For Dementia, Study Indicates “Nicholas Bakalar, The New York Times, October 28, 2020

Fox News (10/28, Rivas) reports, “Intense sadness, hopelessness and anxiety among new mothers may last up to three years after childbirth,” researchers concluded. For the study, investigators “examined data on 5,000 women from the Upstate KIDS study in New York and found that about one in four moms experienced high levels of depression up to three years after birth.” The findings were published online Oct. 28 in Pediatrics.

According to Psychiatric News (10/28), the study also revealed an apparently higher risk “for women who have a history of depression and/or gestational diabetes.”

Related Links:

— “Women May Continue to Experience Symptoms of Postpartum Depression 3 Years After Giving Birth, Psychiatric News, October 28, 2020

MedPage Today (10/27, Dotinga) reports “more than half of 862 emergency physicians surveyed said they’re very concerned (24%) or somewhat concerned (33%) about losing their jobs if they seek mental-health treatment, according to a survey released” by the American College of Emergency Physicians. Mark Rosenberg, DO, MBA, president-elect of ACEP, said, “Working in the front lines over the past 6 months dealing with COVID really increased the crisis. … This was not business as usual. Despite the growing toll that serving on the frontlines is having on emergency physicians, many emergency physicians feel they can’t seek the mental-health treatment that they need.” MedPage Today adds “ACEP, the American Medical Association, the American Psychiatric Association, and other medical societies are supporting the Dr. Lorna Breen Health Care Provider Protection Act (S. 4249; HR 8094),” which would establish “grants and other support to prevent suicide and burnout among students, residents, and professionals in the healthcare industry.”

Related Links:

— MedPage Today (requires login and subscription)

Psychiatric News (10/27) reports, “The percentage of young children with private insurance who were prescribed antipsychotics declined from 2009 to 2017,” investigators concluded in a study that looked at “trends in antipsychotic prescribing to children aged two to seven years who were privately insured, as recorded in a commercial claims database,” with a particular focus “on children who received prescriptions for first- and second-generation antipsychotics from 2007 through 2017.” The findings were published online Oct. 19 in the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Prescribing of Antipsychotics to Young Children Is Declining, Study Suggests, Psychiatric News, October 27, 2020

The AP (10/26, Pane, Stobbe) reports deaths from coronavirus are increasing each day in the US and overall cases are increasing in 47 states. The AP adds that “average deaths per day across the country are up 10% over the past two weeks, from 721 to nearly 794 as of Sunday, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.” Dr. Michael Osterholm, an infectious disease expert at the University of Minnesota, said the current surge is due to the combination of “pandemic fatigue,” “pandemic anger,” and cold weather. Dr. Osterholm added, “When you put those three together, we shouldn’t be surprised what we’re seeing.”

Bloomberg (10/26, Levin) reports the record spike in cases “started with young Americans,” but “is increasingly finding older communities at elevated risk of severe illness.” According to the latest CDC data, “counties with the largest 65-and-over populations are now recording on average 18.9 daily cases per 100,000 residents, 67% higher than a month ago.”

Related Links:

— “Coronavirus deaths are rising again in the US, as feared “Lisa Marie Pane and Mike Stobbe, AP, October 26, 2020

Healio (10/26, Gramigna) reports, “A universal prevention program effectively reduced suicidal ideation and depression symptoms among a general Air Force population,” researchers concluded in a study that “sought to determine whether Wingman-Connect, a network health suicide and depression prevention program for the United States Air Force, reduced suicidal ideation, depression and occupational problems among Airmen-in-training vs. a stress management program.” The research “took place at a U.S. Air Force technical school among 1,485 participants in 215 classes.” The findings of the “cluster randomized clinical trial” were published online in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “Universal prevention program reduces suicidal ideation, depression among Air Force members “Joe Gramigna, Healio, October 26, 2020

Healio (10/23, Gramigna) reported, “Rural Medicare beneficiaries with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia had worse outcomes than their urban counterparts,” investigators concluded in a study that “sought to outline trajectories and survival of hospital, nursing home, hospice and home health care use among 555,333 Medicare beneficiaries with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia in the six years following diagnosis.” The findings of the “retrospective cohort study” were published online in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “Rural Medicare beneficiaries with Alzheimer’s disease, dementia have worse outcomes “Joe Gramigna, Healio, October 23, 2020

HealthDay (10/23, Reinberg) reported, “More regular moderate to vigorous physical activity and less sedentary time improve the mental and physical health of older cancer survivors and older people without a cancer diagnosis, say researchers from the American Cancer Society.” Researchers “analyzed aerobic and muscle-strengthening activities, sitting time and mental and physical health of nearly 78,000 people who took part in the society’s Cancer Prevention Study II Nutrition Cohort,” and “found clinically meaningful differences in mental and physical health between the most and least active, and the least and most sedentary.” The findings were published in Cancer.

Related Links:

— “Exercise Boosts Physical Mental Well-Being of Older Cancer Survivors, HealthDay, October 23, 2020

According to the AP (10/23, Stobbe), 2019 saw the US suicide rate drop slightly, “the first annual decline in more than a decade, according to new government data.” The AP adds, “Experts aren’t sure how the coronavirus will influence this year’s suicide numbers, though American mortality overall is looking far bleaker.”

Related Links:

— “US suicide rate fell last year after decade of steady rise “Mike Stobbe, AP, October 23, 2020

According to Healio (10/22, Michael), valproate use “during pregnancy was associated with an increased risk for neurodevelopmental disorders in offspring during early childhood.” investigators concluded after analyzing “data from the French national health data system” that “included singleton livebirths that occurred from January 2011 through December 2014.” The findings were published online Oct. 22 in Scientific Reports.

Related Links:

— “Antiepileptic drug exposure in pregnancy linked to neurodevelopmental disorders “Erin Michael, Healio, October 22, 2020