On its front page Saturday, the New York Times (6/7, A1, Schwirtz, Santora, Belluck, Subscription Publication) examined the system for post-incarceration mental healthcare against the backdrop of a New York man accused of stabbing a young boy to death and leaving another young child critically wounded. The Times says that even though “the numbers of inmates with mental illness have surged in jails and prisons across the country in recent years,” their mental healthcare and fitness for society “can be haphazard” afterward. New York state “has more tools” than most, yet “there are many ways for mentally unstable people who might be dangerous to slip through the cracks.”

Related Links:

— “Stabbing Case Shows Lapses in Treatment for the Mentally Ill,” Michael Schwirtz, New York Times, June 6, 2014.

MedPage Today (6/6, Neale) reports that research published online in Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association suggests that “the use of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) before a stroke may worsen the event for some patients.” Researchers found that “among patients with hemorrhagic strokes, use of an SSRI in the 90 days before symptom onset was associated with a greater likelihood of the stroke being severe (OR 1.41, 95% CI 1.08-1.84) and of dying within 30 days (OR 1.60, 95% CI 1.17-2.18).” But, in “those with ischemic strokes…SSRI use was not associated with either outcome.”

Related Links:

— “Stroke Rounds: SSRIs May Worsen Hemorrhagic Strokes,” Todd Neale, MedPage Today, June 5, 2014.

Medscape (6/6, Anderson) reports that according to a study published online June 4 in JAMA Psychiatry, “major depressive disorder (MDD) with atypical features, including increased appetite and hypersomnia, is linked to obesity and other measures of adiposity.” The study of 3,054 adults in Switzerland also revealed that “the elevated body mass index (BMI) in patients with atypical depression is not a temporary phenomenon but persists after depressive symptoms remit and is not attributable to new episodes.”

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Related Links:

— Medscape (requires login and subscription)

The Royal Oak (MI) Daily Tribune (6/4, Murray) reports that according to a review (6/4) published June 5 in the new England Journal of Medicine, Nora Volkow, MD, director of the US National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), and colleagues argue that marijuana may “reduce teens’ IQ, that it impairs driving, and that today’s version is more potent than in the past.” Dr. Volkow stated, “It is important to alert the public that using marijuana in the teen years brings health, social, and academic risk.” She added, “Physicians in particular can play a role in conveying to families that early marijuana use can interfere with crucial social and developmental milestones and can impair cognitive development.”

HealthDay (6/4, Thompson) reports that because the drug “is potentially addictive, proven to contribute to fatal motor-vehicle crashes, and can disrupt the brain function and learning of young users,” its legalization “will lead to the sort of nationwide health problems now attributed to alcohol and tobacco, said Volkow.”

MedPage Today (6/5, Gever) reports that Volkow and “and colleagues based their conclusions on findings in 77 previously published papers.” The review also “found an increased likelihood of anxiety and depression, increased likelihood of psychosis, worsened symptoms of schizophrenia, and earlier onset of psychotic events.”

Related Links:

— “National study links marijuana use to adverse effects,” Diana Dillaber Murray, Royal Oak Daily Tribune, June 4, 2014.

The NPR (6/4, Singh) “Shots” blog reported on the difficulties faced by newly graduated college students seeking care for mental health conditions. Even though “finding and paying for a psychologist or psychiatrist can be difficult at any age, for young people who don’t have steady jobs or stable paychecks, the task can be especially daunting.” To lessen some of these difficulties, “‘the trick is planning ahead’ long before graduation, says Luis Ramirez, the associate director of clinical services at New York University,” where counselors help students locate mental health professionals in the community. In addition, NYU also assists graduating students moving out of New York to locate therapists in their new city.

Related Links:

— “For New College Grads, Finding Mental Health Care Can Be Tough,” Maanvi Singh, National Public Radio, June 4, 2014.

Medwire (6/4, Cowen) reports that a study published online May 29 in the journal Bipolar Disorders has “identified differences in suicide risk factors between people with and without bipolar disorder [BD].” After examining data on people who committed suicide in Toronto, Canada, between the years 1998 and 2010, researchers found that “compared with people without bipolar disorder (n=2716), those who died by suicide and had bipolar disorder (n=170) were 1.8 times more likely to be female, twice as likely to have previously attempted suicide and 1.6 times more likely to have had recent contact with psychiatric or emergency services.” However, patients with BD “who died by suicide were two-thirds less likely than controls to have had recent medical stressors.”

Related Links:

— “Suicide risk factors are not generalisable,” Laura Cowen, Medwire News, June 4, 2014.

The Hill (6/4, Al-Faruque) reports that HHS announced on Tuesday that it will disburse “$300 million to help community health centers treat newly insured patients under the Affordable Care Act.” The funds will be used to “expand service hours, hire more healthcare” professionals, “and add oral health, behavioral health, pharmacy, and vision services according to HHS.” In a statement, outgoing Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said, “Health centers are key to the Affordable Care Act’s goal of expanding access to health care.”

Alabama Live (6/4, Oliver) adds that the “funding will be awarded through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), which oversees the centers.”

Related Links:

— “HHS offering $300M to community health centers,” Ferdous Al-Faruque, The Hill, June 3, 2014.

In its “The New Old Age” section, Paula Span writes for the New York Times (6/4, Span) that “purpose,” while hard to define, is vital for aging, and according to one researcher, is “a very robust predictor of health and wellness in old age.” Dr. Patricia Boyle of the Rush Alzheimer’s Disease Center found that a study of 1,000 people over the age of 80 “found that the ones with high purpose scores were 2.4 times more likely to remain free of Alzheimer’s than those with low scores; they were also less likely to develop mild cognitive impairment, often a precursor.”

Related Links:

— “Living on Purpose,” Paula Span, New York Times, June 3 , 2014.

The New York Times (5/29, A18, Medina, Subscription Publication) reports that in the aftermath of the Santa Barbara rampage, California lawmakers are “championing legislation that would permit law enforcement officials and private individuals to seek a restraining order from a judge that would keep people with a potential propensity for violence from buying or owning a gun,” a process similar to one currently covering cases of domestic violence.

However, “even in California, with an overwhelmingly Democratic majority in both houses of the Legislature, it could prove difficult to get the bill passed” due to both gun-rights opposition and concerns about “limiting civil liberties of those dealing with mental illness.”

Related Links:

— “After Attack Near Campus, California Weighs Gun Bill,” Jennifer Medina, New York Times, May 28, 2014.

In continuing coverage, the Wall Street Journal (5/29, A6, Hughes, Subscription Publication) reports that legislation proposed by Rep. Tim Murphy (R-PA), trained as a psychologist, is getting new attention in the wake of the recent California shootings. The legislation would make it easier for authorities or family members to force an individual with severe mental illness into treatment. However, it has drawn concern from those worried it violates the rights of those with mental illnesses.

Related Links:

— “Isla Vista Rampage Reanimates Debate Over Mental-Health Bill,” Siobhan Hughes, Wall Street Journal, May 28, 2014.