According to USA Today (9/10, O’Donnell), fifty-three “children aged 11 and younger took their lives in 2016, the last year for which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has data.” The reasons behind the increase are unclear, but as investigators “look more closely, themes are beginning to emerge.” For example, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, “which can make impulsive youth still more impulsive, was a common characteristic found in a 2016 study” published in Pediatrics “by researchers from Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus,” as were “arguments or disagreements with family members and friends.” Depression, unlike in adult suicides, “didn’t appear to be a major factor” in child suicides.

Related Links:

— “More children are dying by suicide. Researchers are asking why, “Jayne O’Donnell, USA Today, September 10, 2018.

Reuters (9/10, Carroll) reports, “Nearly one in 10 suicide deaths in the U.S. occurs in people with chronic pain,” research indicated.

MedPage Today (9/10, Monaco) reports that in the “large, retrospective study,” investigators arrived at this conclusion after “using death certificates and related records as a data source on contributing factors.” Specifically, “among more than 120,000 suicide deaths from 2003 to 2014, 8.8% of decedents age 10 and older had evidence of chronic pain, according to Emiko Petrosky, MD, MPH, of the CDC in Atlanta, and colleagues.” The findings were published online Sept. 11 in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

According to HealthDay (9/10, Preidt), an accompanying editorial “noted that the role of opioids in suicide risk should be explored and suicide prevention should be a component of care for those suffering from chronic pain.” Healio (9/10, Tedesco) also covers the study.

Related Links:

— “Chronic pain may contribute to suicide, study warns, “Linda Carroll, Reuters, September 10, 2018.

In a nearly 2,500-word story, The Atlantic (9/6, Lucchesi) reports, “Medical researchers estimate that untreated postpartum psychosis leads to an estimated four percent risk of infanticide, and a five percent risk of suicide.” Currently, 12 “states have new legislation or special programs intended to build awareness of postpartum psychosis among new mothers and medical” professionals. Meanwhile, “lawmakers have also considered mandatory screening for new mothers during well-baby visits.” But, some experts in public health “have described these programs as well-intended but ineffective.” In fact, “a 2015 study in Psychiatric Services,” a publication of the American Psychiatric Association, “analyzed the various programs and concluded: ‘Despite the abundant good will, there is no evidence that state policies are addressing this great need.’” Postpartum psychosis “occurs in one to two mothers per 1,000 who give birth, according to the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders.”

Related Links:

— “When Giving Birth Leads to Psychosis, Then to Infanticide, “Emilie Le Beau Lucchesi, The Atlantic, September 06, 2018.

The Boston Globe (9/6, Krantz) reports, “One in five college students reported thoughts of suicide in the past year,” researchers concluded after surveying some “67,000 college students at more than 100 colleges in the” US. The findings were published online Sept. 6 in the journal Depression and Anxiety.

Related Links:

— “Study finds 1 in 5 college students reported thoughts of suicide, “Laura Krantz, The Boston Globe, September 06, 2018.

According to Healio (9/5, Demko), “the percentage of active-duty female Air Force personnel experiencing PTSD symptoms increased as number of wartime experiences increased,” researchers found after using “participants’ responses to the U.S. Air Force Community Assessment Survey in 2008, 2011, or 2013 to determine the connections between wartime experiences and PTSD symptoms.” Included were sample sizes of “18,012 in 2008, 12,249 in 2011, and 8,061 in 2013.” The findings were published online Aug. 21 in the Journal of Women’s Health.

Related Links:

— “, “Savannah Demko, Healio, September 05, 2018.

STAT Plus (8/30, Robbins, Subscription Publication) reports the first digital tablet that can alert a patient’s physician or caregiver after it has been swallowed will soon enter the market and be first sold to people with mental illness who are covered by Medicaid. The product will cost $1,650 per month. The digital pill was approved last year by the FDA “for patients with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder,” and “it’s a high-tech upgrade to the antipsychotic drug Abilify.”

Related Links:

— “At $1,650 per month, the first digital pill will soon roll out to certain Medicaid patients with mental illness, “Rebecca Robbins, STAT Plus , August 30, 2018.

HealthDay (8/30, Mundell) says a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on opioid overdose deaths across 11 states “finds the problem is increasingly complex, but more can be done to stop it.” According to the research team led by Christine Mattson, of the CDC’s National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, most states “were simultaneously struggling with a complex mix of prescription and illicit opioid deaths.” According to Dr. Harshal Kirane, who directs addiction services at Staten Island University Hospital in New York City, the CDC report “reveals two key areas of pressing concern: limited access to addiction care and limited community engagement in overdose education and naloxone distribution.” The report was published August 31 in the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

Related Links:

— “States Struggle With Onslaught of Opioid OD Deaths, “E.J. Mundell, HealthDay, August 30, 2018.

HealthDay (8/29) reports, “Many U.S. Army soldiers who attempt suicide have no prior diagnosis of a mental health issue…and such histories may not be a good predictor of a soldier’s suicide risk,” research indicates. For the study, researchers “tracked the medical histories of thousands of enlisted soldiers (not including Guard or Reserve members) who served from 2004 through 2009.” The study revealed that “attempted suicide risk factors were similar for soldiers with and without a prior diagnosis of a mental health disorder.” The findings (8/29) were published online Aug. 29 in JAMA Psychiatry.

According to Healio (8/29, Demko), the authors of an accompanying editorial (8/29) wrote, “It is essential that suicide prevention efforts move outside of the silo of mental health.” They added that the study’s findings “support the recent changes by the Army to integrate mental health resources into a variety of nontraditional settings to increase access to care and decrease stigma.”

Related Links:

— “Soldiers’ Suicide Attempts Often Come Without Prior Mental Health Diagnosis, “Robert Preidt, HealthDay, August 29, 2018.

Reuters (8/28, Rapaport) reports that research suggests “adults with mood disorders like anxiety and depression may be more likely to have a heart attack or stroke than people without mental illness.” The findings were published in Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes.

HealthDay (8/28, Mozes) reports that the finding comes “from a four-year study that tracked psychological distress among nearly 222,000 seemingly healthy men and women, aged 45 years and older, with no prior history of heart disease.” MedPage Today (8/28, Monaco) also covers the story.

Related Links:

— “Anxiety, depression tied to higher risk of heart attack, stroke, “Lisa Rapaport, Reuters, August 28, 2018.

NPR (8/28, Chatterjee) reports the US Preventive Services Task Force released recommendations urging physicians to “screen pregnant women and new moms” for depression so that “they can be treated before they show symptoms and a diagnosis of depression can be averted.” The task force said that physicians “should look for these risk factors: a history of depression, current depressive symptoms (like sadness, hopelessness about the future, lack of sleep, etc.), and socioeconomic risk factors like being low income, very young or a single parent.”

MedPage Today (8/28, Monaco) reports the group found “convincing evidence” that “referring these women to counseling services, including cognitive behavioral therapy and interpersonal therapy, will have a ‘moderate net benefit’ in helping prevent perinatal depression among women who are at increased risk.”

Related Links:

— “Panel: Doctors Should Focus On Preventing Depression In Pregnant Women, New Moms, “Rhitu Chatterjee, NPR, August 28, 2018.