Reuters (1/30, Rapaport) reports, “Fatal overdoses involving cocaine and other stimulants like methamphetamine have been rising in the U.S. in recent years, and many deaths involve the use of these drugs along with at least one opioid,” researchers concluded after examining “data on nonfatal overdoses from 2006 to 2016 and fatal overdoses from 2006 to 2017 involving cocaine, psychostimulants and opioids.” The study revealed that “as of 2016, 27% of cocaine overdoses and 14% of stimulant overdoses treated in U.S. emergency” departments “also involved an opioid,” whereas “in 2017, almost 75% of overdose deaths involving cocaine and half involving stimulants also involved at least one opioid.” The findings were published online Jan. 7 in the journal Addiction.

Related Links:

— “Stimulant overdoses rising in the U.S, “Lisa Rapaport, Reuters, January 30, 2020

MedPage Today (1/30, D’Ambrosio) reports, “Emergency department (ED) visits for suicidal ideation and/or self-directed harm increased by 25.5% in 2018 over the prior year,” CDC data indicate, with “the most significant increases…among young men and women.” The data revealed that “ED visits for suicidal ideation, self-harm, or both increased by 33.7% among girls ages 10-19, and by 62.3% among boys in this age group.” In addition, investigators “noted a seasonal pattern of ED visits for both boys and girls in this age group, with the lowest proportion of visits occurring during summer months.” The findingswere published online in the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

Related Links:

— “ED Visits for Suicidal Ideation and Self-Harm on the Rise, “Amanda D’Ambrosio, MedPage Today, January 30, 2020

USA Today (1/30, Dastagir) reports on the increasing number of Americans committing suicide. Figures (pdf) released Jan. 30 from the CDC “show 48,344 people died by suicide in 2018, up from 47,173 the year before.” What’s more, “since 1999, the suicide rate has climbed 35%.” Currently, “suicide is the nation’s 10th-leading cause of death, with 14.2 deaths per 100,000 people.” What’s more, even though “thousands of people die by suicide each year, millions think about it.” For example, “in 2017, 10.6 million American adults seriously thought about suicide, 3.2 million made a plan, and 1.4 million attempted it, according to the CDC.”

Related Links:

— “More and more Americans are dying by suicide. What are we missing?, “Alia E. Dastagir, USA Today, January 30, 2020

Reuters (1/29, Carroll) reports researchers found that “nearly half of deployed soldiers thinking about suicide show no obvious signs that would help mental health professionals identify them.” The researchers analyzed “data on almost 4,000 soldiers serving in Afghanistan in 2012” and “found that 40% of those who said they had contemplated suicide in the past 30 days had not been diagnosed with a major mental health problem and did not show any other signs that would help [healthcare professionals] to identify them as being at risk.” The findings were published in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “Many soldiers thinking about suicide show no signs, “Linda Carroll, Reuters, January 30, 2020

HealthDay (1/28, Preidt) reports, “Girls tend to be diagnosed with autism at an older age than boys, perhaps delaying essential treatment,” research indicated. Included in the study were “the first 1,000 participants in the Rhode Island Consortium for Autism Research and Treatment.” The study revealed that “on average, girls were diagnosed with autism nearly 1.5 years later than boys.”

Healio (1/28, Gramigna) reports that the study also “reported a high rate of co-occurring psychiatric and medical conditions among those affected.” For example, “approximately 50% of participants reported another neurodevelopmental disorder, such as” AD/HD “or intellectual disability; 44.1% reported a psychiatric disorder; 42.7% reported a neurological condition, such as seizures/epilepsy, migraines, or tics; 92.5% reported at least one general medical condition and approximately 33% reported other behavioral problems.” The findings were published online Jan. 20 in the journal Autism Research.

Related Links:

— “Girls With Autism Diagnosed Later Than Boys, “Robert Preidt, HealthDay, January 28, 2020

Medscape (1/28, Franki, Subscription Publication) reports, “The Food and Drug Administration is strengthening a previous warning regarding the uncommon risk of serious bowel complications associated with the schizophrenia medication clozapine.” According to an FDA press release, “clozapine affects bowel function in a majority of patients, and constipation is a common adverse event associated with clozapine use.” These effects “can uncommonly progress to serious bowel complications, including complete bowel blockage, and can result in hospitalization or even death if the constipation is not diagnosed and treated quickly.”

Related Links:

— “FDA Strengthens Bowel Complication Warning for Clozapine, “Lucas Franki, Medscape, January 28, 2020

Reuters (1/27, Carroll) reports that “more than a third of gynecologists don’t screen for” depression in perimenopausal women, according to a study published in Menopause, “even though studies have shown that some 40% of women experience depression as they go through menopause.” Researchers surveyed gynecologists and found that “while most of the gynecologists surveyed said they believed they could recognize depression in perimenopausal women, almost half did not feel confident in their ability to treat depressed patients.” The article mentions that the researchers sent survey invitations to 500 members of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and 206 participated.

Related Links:

— “Depression common in lead-up to menopause, but few gynecologists screen for it, “Linda Carroll, Reuters, January 27, 2020

HealthDay (1/27, Preidt) reports research indicated that “children and teens in U.S. areas with greater levels of poverty face a higher risk of suicide.” Researchers arrived at that conclusion after having “analyzed federal government data on suicides in children and teens aged 5 to 19 that occurred from 2007 to 2016.” What’s more, the study revealed that “youth suicide by guns was 87% more likely in areas with the highest poverty levels.” The findings were published online Jan. 27 in the journal JAMA Pediatrics.

Psychiatric News (1/27) also covers the study.

Related Links:

— “Poverty Could Drive Up Youth Suicide Risk, ” Robert Preidt, HealthDay, January 27, 2020

Medscape (1/27, Anderson, Subscription Publication) reports, “Early life adversity including neglect and physical, emotional, and sexual abuse is the single biggest risk factor for psychiatric disorders,” researchers concluded in “what has been described as a seminal review.” The findings of the review paper were published in the January issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry, a publication of the American Psychiatric Association.

Related Links:

— “Top Risk Factor for Mental Disorders Identified, “Pauline Anderson, Medscape, January 27, 2020

Healio (1/24, Gramigna) reported, “Adolescents who were cyberbullied experienced greater psychiatric symptom severity, including for depression and PTSD,” researchers concluded after collecting and analyzing “data on the prevalence of social media utilization and cyberbullying victimization from 50 inpatients aged 13 to 17 years.” The findings of the “questionnaire-based study” were published online Jan. 14 in Journal of Clinical Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Victims of cyberbullying report higher levels of depression, PTSD, “Joe Gramigna, Healio, January 24, 2020