MedPage Today (1/22, Robertson ) reports, “The risk of congenital malformations appears to be lower with buprenorphine than with methadone when taken during the first trimester of pregnancy for opioid use disorder (OUD), according to an analysis of Medicaid data.” In the study, published in JAMA Internal Medicine, “in the buprenorphine group, risk of congenital malformations was 50.9 out of 1,000 pregnancies compared with 60.6 per 1,000 in the methadone group.”

Related Links:

— MedPage Today (requires login and subscription)

CNN (1/22, Howard ) reports, “Testing a person’s blood for a type of protein called phosphorylated tau, or p-tau, could be used to screen for Alzheimer’s disease with ‘high accuracy,’ even before symptoms begin to show, a new study suggests.” The research “involved testing blood for a key biomarker of Alzheimer’s called p-tau217, which increases at the same time as other damaging proteins — beta amyloid and tau — build up in the brains of people with the disease.” The “simple blood test was found to be up to 96% accurate in identifying elevated levels of beta amyloid and up to 97% accurate in identifying tau.” The findings were published in JAMA Neurology.

The Hill (1/22, Sforza ) also covers the story.

Related Links:

— “New blood test that screens for Alzheimer’s may be a step closer to reality, study suggests,” Jacqueline Howard, CNN, January 22, 2024

HCP Live (1/22, Derman) reports, “In a new study, older adults with treatment-resistant schizophrenia reported significantly fewer adverse events of clozapine than young adults.” Investigators “obtained data from a retrospective cohort study in a large psychiatric institute in the Netherlands, including 284 participants diagnosed with treatment-resistant schizophrenia who started taking clozapine between 2011 and 2020,” and “compared the number and type of adverse events, as well as the number of treatment discontinuations and the time until discontinuation due to adverse events, of older adults versus younger adults.” The findings were published in the International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Young Adults at Greater Risk of Adverse Events with Clozapine than Older Adults,” Chelsie Derman, HCP Live, January 22, 2024

HCP Live (1/20, Derman) reported, “In addition to the increased risk of fracture, a new study suggests osteoporosis could put older adults at an increased risk of depression.” Investigators found that “individuals with osteoporosis had a 73% greater risk of experiencing depression symptoms than individuals without osteoporosis.” The findings were published in Public Health.

Related Links:

— “Osteoporosis Could Signal Increased Risk of Depression in Older Adults,” Chelsie Derman, HCP Live, January 20, 2024

HealthDay (1/19, Thompson ) reported, “People coming off antidepressants often struggle with emotional and social turmoil, especially if they quit their meds cold turkey, a new study” indicated. The study, in which investigators “conducted interviews with 20 people who had attempted within the past year to withdraw from SSRI…antidepressants,” found that “challenges reported by patients quitting antidepressants included feeling overwhelmed by their emotions, finding social situations less enjoyable, and feeling detached and less empathetic towards others.”

The findings were published in Health Expectations.

Related Links:

— “Quick Withdrawal From Antidepressants Can Take Emotional, Cognitive Toll,” Dennis Thompson, HealthDay, January 19, 2024