HealthDay (5/29, Goodwin) reports, “Sensory therapies using brushes, swings and other play equipment are increasingly used by occupational therapists to treat children with developmental issues, such as autism, but” the American Academy of Pediatrics “says there isn’t much evidence that such therapies actually work.” Nevertheless, “the group isn’t completely discounting the potential of sensory therapies — it’s a ripe area for research, it noted” in a policy statement appearing online May 28 in the journal Pediatrics. Reuters(5/28, Pittman) also covered the story.

Related Links:

— “Doubt Cast on Usefulness of ‘Sensory’ Therapies for Autism,”Jenifer Goodwin, HealthDay, May 28, 2012.

HealthDay (5/26, Thompson) reported that according to a study published in the February issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, “six of every 10 adolescents who went to an emergency room for treatment after harming themselves were released without receiving a mental health assessment or any follow-up mental health care.” The study’s lead author cautioned, “Most young people who self-harm suffer from some underlying psychological disorder.” He added, “It’s critical to conduct a mental health assessment in addition to the evaluation of their physical health if we’re to get to the root of their problems.”

Related Links:

— “More Mental Health Care Urged for Kids Who Self-Harm,”Dennis Thompson, HealthDay, May 25, 2012.

In continuing coverage, Bloomberg BusinessWeek (5/25, Flinn) reports, “More than half of school-age children with autism in the US take mood-altering drugs as doctors increasingly target the broad range of psychiatric symptoms tied to the ailment,” according to a survey conducted by the National Institute of Mental Health. The survey “found that 56 percent of those age six to 17 with autism, were on one or more drugs normally given for disorders such as anxiety, depression, psychosis or hyperactivity.” In addition, the survey “found about a third of children received stimulants, a quarter anti-anxiety or mood-stabilizers, and 20 percent anti-depressants. Others got sleep, anti-psychotic or anti-seizure” medicines.

Related Links:

— “More Than Half Autistic Kids Prescribed Mood Medicines,”Ryan Flinn, Bloomberg Business Week, May 24, 2012.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (5/18, Smith) reports that even “though other families of prescription drugs also are involved in drug abuse, opioids are the biggest problem, both” on the local and national level. Last year, “some 210 million prescriptions were written last year for opioid medications, Nora Volkow, head of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, told CBS ’60 Minutes.'” The problem of prescription medication abuse threatens even society’s smallest members. “In 2009, there were more than 13,000 babies born with neonatal abstinence syndrome after being exposed to opioids in utero, a three-fold increase since 2000, according to an article just published online by the Journal of the American Medical Association.”

Related Links:

— “Abuse of opioid drugs hits all-time high,”Pohla Smith, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, May 17, 2012.

The National Journal /NextGov (Subscription Publication) reports that “mental illness ranks as the leading cause of hospitalization for active-duty troops, according to a report published by the Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center AFHSC) in the April issue of its Medical Surveillance Monthly Report, released on Monday. Mental-health disorders stood out as the leading cause of hospitalization of active-duty service members in 2007, 2009, and 2011, the report noted.” In addition, AFHSC “reported that troops seeking help for mental health problems ranked third in outpatient visits in all treatment categories, behind unspecified ‘other’ conditions — which included routine physicals, immunizations, and predeployment assessments — and musculoskeletal injuries during the same time period.”

Army Review To Examine PTSD Diagnoses Going Back To 2001. In continuing coverage, the AP (5/18, Baldor) reports that on Wednesday, US Army leaders “said…they are launching a sweeping, independent review of how the service evaluates soldiers with possible post-traumatic stress disorder following recent complaints that some PTSD diagnoses” at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Washington state “were improperly overturned.” The Army “said it will review the diagnoses at all of its medical facilities going back to October 2001. And top Army leaders said they will develop a plan to correct any decisions or policies necessary to make sure that soldiers are receiving the care and treatment they deserve.”

Related Links:

— “Mental Illness Is the Leading Cause of Hospitalization for Active-Duty Troops,” Bob Brewin, NationalJournal, May 17, 2012.

MedWire (5/17, Davenport) reported, “Antidepressants are frequently used to treat bipolar disorder depression, typically in more severe cases, which may underlie the poorer responses and high rates of mood switching in patients given antidepressants,” according to astudy published in the June issue of the Journal of Affective Disorders. In “290 adult bipolar disorder patients in a major depressive episode,” researchers found that by eight weeks, “just 64.4% of antidepressant-treated patients experienced a treatment response, defined as 50% or greater recovery, compared with 82.1% of controls. Patients not given antidepressants were less likely to experience a mood switch than treated patients (78.6 vs 38.6%).”

Related Links:

— “Antidepressant impact in bipolar depression masked by use in severe cases,”Liam Davenport, MedWire News, May 17, 2012.

The CBS Evening News (5/16, lead story, 3:20, Pelley) broadcast, “In sports — including boxing and football — traumatic brain injury has been linked to a condition called chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE.” In a new study, researchers found “striking” similarities when comparing the “brains of athletes with known CTE with the brains of four Iraq-Afghan veterans who survived IED explosions or multiple concussions.” The “four veterans all developed typical symptoms of CTE and died prematurely several years later.”

A report for the CBS News (5/17) website notes that an “‘animal model developed by the researchers will enable a better understanding of the brain pathology involved in blast injuries and ideally lead to new therapies to help service members and veterans with traumatic brain injuries,'” said “Dr. Joel Kupersmith, the chief research and development officer for the Department of Veterans Affairs.”

The AP (5/17, Neergaard) reports, “A small study raises more concern about the long-term consequences of brain injuries suffered by thousands of soldiers — suggesting they may be at risk of developing” CTE, a degenerative brain disease that has also been found in “some retired football players.” Results of the study were reported Wednesday, “in the journal Science Translational Medicine.”

Related Links:

— “Soldiers’ brain damage similar to football players’, study of chronic traumatic encephalopathy shows,”Ryan Jaslow , CBS News, May 16, 2012.

USA Today (5/17, Zoroya) reports that the US Army is “launching a servicewide review of mental health cases dating back to 2001 to ensure that soldiers suffering a behavioral health illness were not denied appropriate medical retirement benefits. The move by Army Secretary John McHugh and Gen. Raymond Odierno, Army chief of staff, comes after findings this year that several” post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) diagnoses at Madigan Army Medical Center “were wrongfully reduced to lesser illnesses during medical retirement evaluations.”

The Washington Post (5/17, Vogel) reports, “The Army’s review of 400 cases” at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, where Madigan Army Medical Center is located, “has led to more than 100 service members having their PTSD diagnoses restored. The controversy stems from the work of a special forensic psychiatric team that in 2007 began evaluating mental health diagnoses of service members preparing to leave the military. The screening team reversed at least 290 PTSD diagnoses made by the military or the Department of Veterans Affairs.”

Related Links:

— “Army reviews mental health cases going back to 2001,”Gregg Zoroya, USA Today, May 17, 2012.

The Huffington Post (5/16, Ruiz) reports, “Drew McWilliams, a clinician and the Chief Operating Officer at Morrison Child and Family Services in Portland, Ore.,” reported that “his clinic has seen an increasing number of children suffering anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder” as their families endure “the stress borne of persistent financial insecurity.” The National Institute of Mental Health’s Christopher Sarampote said, “Kids who face adversity have highs and lows, strengths and weaknesses,” adding, “Parents can really be strong agents of change.” Sarampote also “cautions that the research is emerging and much remains unknown.”

Related Links:

— “Children’s Mental Health At Risk From Chronic Financial Instability,”Rebecca Ruiz, Huffington Post, May 16, 2012.

USA Today (5/16, Hellmich) reports, “Education may not only improve a person’s finances, it is also linked to better health habits and a longer life,” according to a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Health Statistics. Individuals “who have a bachelor’s degree or higher live about nine years longer than those who don’t graduate from high school, according to” the report. According to Amy Bernstein, the lead author of the report and a health services researcher for the National Center for Health Statistics, “Highly educated people tend to have healthier behaviors, avoid unhealthy ones and have more access to medical care when they need it.” Bernstein added, “All of these factors are associated with better health.”

Related Links:

— “Higher education linked to longer life, CDC report shows,”Nanci Hellmich, USA Today, May 16, 2012.