HealthDay (6/11, Gotkine ) reports a research letter published in JAMA Network Open says “opportunities remain to increase use of the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.” The researchers calculated that “between July 1, 2022, and Dec. 31, 2024, 988 was contacted 16,333,707 times nationally, with 11.0 percent of contacts rerouted to the Veterans Crisis Line.” Over the 30-month period, “the national lifetime 988 contact incidence rate was 48.9 per 1,000 population,” and the “estimated lifetime 988 use prevalence was 2.4 percent. The corresponding past-year contact incidence rate and past-year prevalence was 23.7 per 1,000 population and 1.6 percent.” They concluded, “The past-year 988 contact rate of 23.7 per 1,000 is less than half that of the rate of adult emergency department visits that include a mental health diagnosis (53.0 per 1,000 population), [suggesting] that although 988 has been contacted more than 16 million times since its launch, there remains opportunity to increase 988 use.”

Related Links:

— “988 Contacted More Than 16 Million Times From Its Launch to December 2024,” Elana Gotkine, HealthDay, June 11, 2025

American Journal of Managed Care (6/10, Shaw ) reports a study suggests that “in the process of recovering from COVID-like symptoms, mental health and well-being took close to 3 times as long to recover compared with physical health.” Data show that “although physical health tends to bounce back by 3 months after symptoms became apparent, mental well-being can take up to 9 months to reach a comparable level of recovery.” Researchers found that “up to 1 year after infection, close to 20% of patients continued to report a reduced health-related quality of life (HRQOL) vs before their self-reported COVID-like symptoms.” Furthermore, they noted there “is potential for underestimation of other illnesses because of this; among their study population, health recovery recovered to a higher level for those who reported COVID-like symptoms vs those who tested negative.” The study was published in Open Forum Infectious Diseases.

Related Links:

— “Prolonged Mental Health Recovery Linked to Long COVID,” Maggie L. Shaw, American Journal of Managed Care, June 10, 2025

Healio (6/10, Herpen) reports a study found that “therapy for anxiety and depression after stroke was associated with improved recovery, with early treatment leading to better outcomes than delayed treatment.”

Study results indicate that patients “who commenced psychological services 12 months or more after stroke had 20% lower odds for reliable recovery from symptoms of anxiety or depression compared with those who began attending within 6 months of their stroke. Both groups demonstrated moderate reductions in depression and large reductions in anxiety symptoms.” Yet data show “that patients who started treatment earlier consistently recorded lower” PHQ-9 and GAD-7 scores.

Researchers concluded, “It is essential for general practitioners and other clinicians working with stroke survivors to screen for depression and anxiety symptoms and refer patients for psychological therapy as early as possible.” The study was published in Nature Mental Health.

Related Links:

— “Earlier counseling after stroke linked to improved anxiety, depression,” Robert Herpen, MA, Healio, June 10, 2025

Psychiatric News (6/9) reports a study found that “people who work in the arts, design, entertainment, sports, and the media have a higher prevalence of frequent mental distress than those in other fields.” Researchers examined three measures of mental health among participants: diagnosis of lifetime depression; number of self-reported mentally unhealthy days (MUDs) in the past month; and frequent mental distress, “defined as a MUD score of 14 or higher.” They found that “overall, 14.2% of participants reported lifetime depression and 9.6% reported frequent mental distress.” When compared with workers in a reference group, “workers in the arts, design, entertainment, sports, and media had 1.32 times the prevalence of frequent mental distress.” Meanwhile, employees “in food preparation and serving (1.20 times), health care support (1.19 times), and sales and related occupations (1.13 times) also had statistically higher prevalence of frequent mental distress compared with the reference group.” The study was published in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “Frequent Mental Distress Varies by Occupation, Psychiatric News, June 9, 2025

HealthDay (6/9, Thompson ) reports a study found that “the percentage of people in treatment for cannabis use disorder declined from 19% in 2003 to 13% in 2019.” Researchers noted the decline “occurred even though millions of Americans could be diagnosed with cannabis use disorder,” due in part to marijuana now being legal for recreational use in 24 states plus DC. According to the CDC, “about 3 in 10 people who use marijuana are believed to have cannabis use disorder.” Researchers said in background notes that “more than 16 million people 12 and older now meet the criteria for cannabis use disorder.” They concluded, “Our findings highlight an urgent and growing need for targeted outreach and improved education about available treatment options for cannabis use disorder.” The study was published in Substance Use & Misuse.

Related Links:

— “Fewer People Seeking Treatment For Cannabis Use Disorder,”Dennis Thompson, HealthDay, June 9, 2025

The Washington Post (6/7, Chesler) reported that a new studyby research firm SSRS found that “some 95.6 million people 18 and over who have used dating websites or apps,” and many are not alone in seeing their “mood shift downward the longer” they spend online. Some experts “say online dating can generate mental health hazards.” One therapist warned that “users can become addicted to apps and to the dopamine rush they get when someone they’re interested in responds to them.” He said, “People are constantly looking for validation and a dopamine and serotonin rush that doesn’t happen, and if it does happen, it’s fleeting and makes them want to go back for more.” Another therapist said the apps can be particularly negative for young people, who lack the emotional development to put rejection in context. She said, “Apps like that can really make people feel ugly and unwanted.” Overall, experts encourage breaks from social media and dating apps to curb addictive tendencies.

Related Links:

— “The Washington Post (requires login and subscription)

Psychiatric News (6/6) reported a study found that “almost all the callers who reached out to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (now the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline) say their calls helped them, with 88% saying that it stopped them from killing themselves.” Researchers interviewed 437 adults two weeks after their initial call to the Lifeline between April 15, 2020, and August 15, 2021. They observed that “over half of the callers reported being at least somewhat likely to act on their suicidal thoughts at the time of their call. However, nearly 72% of callers reported that calling the Lifeline helped them a lot, and a further 26% said it helped them a little.” In addition, nearly all callers “said their counselors engaged in Lifeline best practices” and that “about 59% of callers said they’d had no thoughts of killing themselves since the call.” The study was published in Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior.

Related Links:

— “Majority of Callers Say 988 Lifeline Saved Their Lives, Psychiatric News, June 6, 2025

Medical Economics (6/4, Littrell) reports, “Artificial intelligence (AI) can process vast amounts of medical data and deliver clinical-grade responses, but a new international study suggests it still falls short where human connection matters most.” The study “compared 7,165 medical queries answered by either AI models or human clinicians in the United States and Australia.” Researchers found “that AI-generated responses often matched expert standards for accuracy and professionalism, particularly for factual or procedural medical questions. In some cases, AI outperformed human clinicians in consistency and clarity – particularly in length and format.” However, performance broke down “when it came to more nuanced ‘why’ or ‘how’ questions,” as AI models “sometimes failed to fully grasp the clinical context or emotional weight of sensitive cases, like mental health concerns or end-of-life discussions.” Additionally, AI models “leaned heavily on clinical jargon, sometimes alienating or confusing patients.” The study was published in the Journal of Health Organization and Management.

Related Links:

— “AI can aid diagnoses, but human touch still matters,”Austin Littrell, Medical Economics, June 4, 2025

Healio (6/4, Cooper ) reports a study found that “patients with Sjögren’s disease demonstrate a ‘pronounced risk’ for attempting suicide, with a hazard ratio of 18.054 compared with a general population cohort.” Researchers observed the “incidence rate of suicide attempts was statistically significantly higher among patients with Sjögren’s disease: 0.247 per 100 person-years vs. 0.014 in the comparison group. In a fully adjusted Cox regression, patients with Sjögren’s disease had a hazard ratio of 18.054for suicide attempts vs. the comparison group.” Researchers noted, “It is not uncommon for individuals with [Sjögren’s syndrome] to experience a decline in [health-related quality of life] to levels likened to, or even worse than, death.” They added, “These revelations bear significant weight for health care practitioners tending to patients with Sjögren’s syndrome, arming them with empirical evidence to counsel patients on the heightened suicide attempt risks.” The study was published in Scientific Reports.

Related Links:

— “Patients with Sjögren’s disease demonstrate significant risk for suicide attempt,”Justin Cooper, Healio, June 4, 2025

Psychiatric News (6/4) reports panelists discussed “the potential of glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists to treat neuropsychiatric disorders such as cognitive dysfunction and alcohol use disorder” at the American Society of Clinical Psychopharmacology’s annual meeting in Phoenix. One panelist said GLP-1 medications do not increase resting metabolic rate or promote physical activity, but “they do have a very robust signal in reducing caloric intake.” Furthermore, “these medications are believed to modulate the rewarding aspects of food – and potentially other substances.” A recent Phase 2 trial “found that weekly low-dose semaglutide significantly reduced the amount of alcohol consumed by adults with alcohol use disorder during a self-administration task taken after four weeks of treatment.” Another recent randomized trial “found no difference in executive function scores between the semaglutide and placebo groups. However, the researchers did find a statistical improvement in global cognition for semaglutide compared with placebo – suggesting it may work in other cognitive domains.”

Related Links:

— “Researchers Look to Unlock GLP-1 Drugs’ Potential in Psychiatry, Psychiatric News , June 4, 2025