HealthDay (4/17, Gotkine ) reports a systematic review and meta-analysis suggests that “widespread use of digital technology seems to be associated with lower rates of cognitive decline in adults older than 50.” Researchers analyzed 57 “observational or cohort studies focusing on general digital technology use in older adults.” They found “an association for use of digital technologies with a reduced risk for cognitive impairment (odds ratio, 0.42) as well as reduced time-dependent rates of cognitive decline (hazard ratio, 0.74). When accounting for demographic, socioeconomic, health, and cognitive reserve proxies, the effects remained significant.” The review was published in Nature Human Behaviour.

Related Links:

— “Digital Technology Linked to Lower Rates of Cognitive Decline in Adults Older Than 50,” Elana Gotkine, HealthDay, April 17, 2025

HCPlive (4/16, Brooks ) reports a study found that “past-month binge drinking rates were greater among young adult females than males during the 2021 to 2023 period, reversing 2017 to 2019 patterns, whereas males in other age groups continued to binge and heavy drink at higher rates than females.” Using data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, researchers “assessed sex-based differences in past-month binge drinking,” which is defined as “≥ 5 alcoholic drinks for males or ≥ 4 alcohol drinks for females on the same occasion, and heavy drinking, defined as binge drinking on ≥ 5 days in the past 30 days.”

From 2021 to 2023, they found that females across all age groups “had significantly lower overall past month binge drinking levels than males,” while females “18 to 25 years of age had greater binge drinking levels than males.” Investigators noted that “female adults had significantly lower heavy drinking levels than male adults across all age groups from 2017 to 2019 and 2021 to 2023.” The study was published in JAMA.

Related Links:

— “Binge Drinking Rates Increasing Among Young Female Adults, Study Finds,” Abigail Brooks, MA, HCPLive, April 16, 2025

CNN (4/16, McPhillips , Christensen ) reports new datapublished Wednesday by the CDC National Center for Health Statistics indicate that “more than 1 in 8 people ages 12 and up in the US have been depressed in recent years.” This suggests that “depression prevalence has nearly doubled, from 7.3% in 2015-16 to more than 13% in 2021-23.” The data show “women are more likely than men to have depression, and prevalence tends to decrease with age and greater wealth. Overall, about 16% of women and 10% of men had depression during the 2021-23 survey period. But more than 1 in 4 adolescent girls between ages 12 and 19 had depression,” higher than any other demographic group. The report shows “only about 40% of adults and adolescents with depression received counseling or therapy,” and that “adult women are also more than twice as likely as adult men to take medication for depression, according to another CDC report published Wednesday.”

Related Links:

— “As depression becomes more common in the US, treatment rates vary, CDC reports show,” Deidre McPhillips and Jen Christensen, CNN, April 16, 2025

The Washington Post (4/15, Nirappil ) reports that on Tuesday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a report finding that “one in 31 8-year-olds had autism,” according to a CDC survey, “a small increase from previous years.”

The AP (4/15, Stobbe ) reports the previous CDC estimate from 2020 found that one in 36 US children have autism. According to the report, “boys continue to be diagnosed more than girls, and the highest rates are among children who are Asian/Pacific Islander, American Indian/Alaska Native and Black.” Health officials “largely attribute growing autism numbers to better recognition of cases through wide screening and better diagnosis.”

CNN (4/15, McPhillips ) reports the study is “based on surveillance data from 16 areas that participate in the CDC’s Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring Network. The data are not nationally representative and encompass a different set of sites than the last report with data from 2020, which only captured data from 11 sites.” Improvements in early identification of autism “have been apparent,” the authors of the CDC report wrote, and “differences in the prevalence of children identified with [autism spectrum disorder] across communities might be due to differences in availability of services for early detection and evaluation and diagnostic practices.”

Related Links:

— “Autism rates in US rise again to 1 in 31 kids, CDC says,” Mike Strobbe, Associated Press, April 15, 2025

HealthDay (4/14, Thompson ) reports a review of 102 previous clinical trials found that “ADHD medications generally have just a small effect on a person’s blood pressure, heart rate and heart electrical activity.” Researchers observed that “there were no significant differences between stimulant ADHD meds like methylphenidate and amphetamine and non-stimulant drugs like atomoxetine and viloxazine.” Only guanfacine “led to decreased blood pressure and heart rate, results showed.” Nevertheless, “the findings also reinforce that doctors should keep an eye on blood pressure and heart rate in people taking ADHD medications, whether or not the drugs are stimulants.” Researchers concluded, “Overall, the risk-benefit ratio is reassuring for people taking ADHD medications.” The review was published in The Lancet Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “ADHD Drugs Generally Safe For Heart Health, Review Says,” Dennis Thompson, HealthDay, April 14, 2025

MedPage Today (4/14, George ) reports a study suggests that “people that required emergency department (ED) or acute hospital care for cannabis use may have an increased risk of a subsequent dementia diagnosis.” Researchers found that “among adults ages 45 years and older with no history of dementia, those who needed acute care due to cannabis use had a 1.5 times higher risk of a new dementia diagnosis within 5 years compared with patients who had an all-cause acute care encounter.” Notably, the “risk of a new dementia diagnosis for people who needed acute care due to cannabis use was 3.9 times higher than that of the general population.” Researchers stated that “the findings do not show that cannabis use causes dementia.” The study was published in JAMA Neurology.

Related Links:

— MedPage Today (requires login and subscription)

Healio (4/10) reported a study found that “adults showed a significant reduction in their clinical-level mental health symptoms with unrestricted access to a generative AI-powered chatbot designed for mental health treatment.” Study researchers “evaluated Therabot’s ability to treat symptoms of major depressive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) or high risk for feeding and eating disorders (CHR-FED) among 210 adults aged 18 years or older.” The results suggest that “Therabot users experienced greater reductions in their respective symptoms compared with the control group.” In addition, “the intervention group reported a therapeutic alliance with Therabot comparable to what patients report with in-person providers.” Nevertheless, researchers concluded, “While these results are very promising, no generative AI agent is ready to operate fully autonomously in mental health where there is a very wide range of high-risk scenarios it might encounter.” The study was published in NEJM AI.

Related Links:

— “Generative AI chatbot ‘promising’ for mental health treatment, but supervision needed,”Moira Mahoney, Healio, April 10, 2025

KFF Health News (4/11, Berger ) reported a study found that “psychiatric ‘boarding’ – when a patient waits in the emergency room after [healthcare professionals] decide to admit the person – has increased because of a rise in suicide attempts, among other mental health issues, and a shortage of inpatient psychiatric beds” in hospitals. Researchers observed that “the number of cases in which children spent at least two days in pediatric hospitals before being transferred for psychiatric care also increased 66% from 2017 through 2023 to reach 16,962 instances.” They attribute the surge in behavioral health visits “to factors such as social media engagement, isolation caused by shutdowns during the covid-19 pandemic, and the political climate.” Over the past decade, “proposed psychiatric facilities for minors” in multiple states have faced local resistance over fears “it would worsen safety and lower property values.” The study was published in Pediatrics.

Related Links:

— “More Psych Hospital Beds Are Needed for Kids, but Neighbors Say Not Here,” Eric Berger, KFF Health News, April 11, 2025

HealthDay (4/10, Thompson ) reports a study found that individuals who “imbibe eight or more alcoholic drinks a week have an increased risk of hyaline arteriolosclerosis, or a thickening and narrowing of the small arteries that feed the brain.” This condition “appears as lesions, or areas of damaged tissue in the brain,” and is “associated with memory and thinking problems.” Researchers found that “heavy drinkers had 133% higher odds of having brain lesions than those who never drank.” Meanwhile, “former heavy drinkers had 89% higher odds of brain lesions, while moderate drinkers who imbibed seven or fewer drinks a week had a 60% increased risk. Heavy drinkers also had an increased risk of developing tau tangles, 41% higher than non-drinkers, results show.” The study was published in Neurology.

Related Links:

— “Heavy Drinking Linked To Brain Damage, Increased Risk Of Dementia,”Dennis Thompson, HealthDay, April 10, 2025

HealthDay (4/10, Gotkine ) reports that a research letter published in Annals of Internal Medicine says that “about one in 10 U.S. adults with substance use disorder (SUD) report past-year hospitalizations.” The researchers “identified 60 million U.S. adults with SUD, of whom 5.8 million (9.7 percent) reported past-year hospitalizations.” Among patients with SUD, “those with versus without past-year hospitalizations were more likely to be older and more likely to have two or more medical comorbid conditions.” In addition, hospitalized adults with alcohol use disorder, “cannabis use disorder, and tobacco use disorder were also more likely to have serious mental illness. Across all groups apart from AUD, hospitalized adults were less likely to be uninsured.” Further, hospitalized adults with opioid use disorder “were less likely to be non-Hispanic Black.”

Related Links:

— “One in 10 With Substance Use Disorder Report Past-Year Hospitalizations,”Elana Gotkine, HealthDay, April 10, 2025