PatientEngagementHIT (11/8, Heath) reports, “Seven in 10 counties in the United States have insufficient maternal mental health care access, a problem that exacerbates maternal health outcomes, according to a new assessment from the Policy Center for Maternal Mental Health.” Researchers used “a 36-point Risk Factor Score (RFS) assessing risk factors like the prevalence of domestic violence, poverty, unintended pregnancy, and social isolation.” The researchers “found that nearly 700 counties in the U.S. are at high risk for maternal mental health disorders. Additionally, more than half of the perinatal population lives in a [county] with an RSF level of 15 or more.”

Related Links:

— “Need Outpaces Maternal Mental Healthcare Access in 150 Counties, PatientEngagementHIT , November 8, 2023

Psychiatric News (11/8) reports that “APA’s most recent Healthy Minds Poll, which asked 2,210 adults living in the United States about the ways in which they practice kindness, most often see others practicing acts of kindness, and more,” found that 89% of respondents “said that showing others kindness made them feel better, and 90% said receiving an act of kindness made them feel better.” When “polled were also asked to reflect on their feelings of anxiety over current events,” the data indicated that “two-thirds of respondents (67%) reported feeling anxious about international conflict—up 12% from last month’s poll.”

Related Links:

— “Practicing Kindness Has Positive Impact on Mental Health, APA Poll Finds, Psychiatric News, November 8, 2023

The New York Times (11/9, Ghorayshi) reports, “Antidepressants have long been among the most widely prescribed drugs in the U.S.” However, “many of the most popular antidepressants, known as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, or S.S.R.I.s, come with sexual side effects.” When the “S.S.R.I.s went on the market in the late 1980s, patients began telling their psychiatrists that they were having sexual problems.” American Psychiatric Association Council on Research Chair Jonathan Alpert, MD, PhD, said, “Only in going back and looking more carefully and gathering more data did we realize that actually those serotonergic drugs, the older ones, also caused sexual dysfunction.” Still, “in many cases, the problems caused by the medications can be managed.” For instance, “adding the non-S.S.R.I. antidepressant Wellbutrin, which acts on norepinephrine and dopamine in the brain, has been shown to diminish sexual symptoms in many patients, Dr. Alpert said.”

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— “The New York Times (requires login and subscription)

HealthDay (11/7, Murez) reports, “Many people with type 2 diabetes also struggle with depression, and this combination can lead to premature death, researchers say.” In a study published in Diabetes & Metabolic Syndrome: Clinical Research & Reviews, researchers found that “overall, participants with diabetes were 1.7 times more likely to die prematurely than those without diabetes, the data showed.” And “the risk of death more than quadrupled for participants with both diabetes and depression compared to those without diabetes or depression.”

Related Links:

— “Depression Can Be a Killer for People With Diabetes,”Cara Murez, HealthDay, November 7, 2023

The Washington Post (11/6, Searing) reports, “People who experienced trauma as a child or adolescent were found to be 48 percent more likely to have serious and recurrent headaches as an adult than were those who had not experienced trauma in their early years.” The findings, published in Neurology, are the result of an “analysis of data from 28 studies, involving 154,739 people.” Overall, 31 percent “reported having experienced a traumatic event at least once before age 18.”

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— “The Washington Post (requires login and subscription)