In an op-ed in the New York Times (8/28, Tufekci, Subscription Publication), contributing opinion writer Zeynep Tufekci argues that the media should change the way it covers mass shootings to decrease the likelihood of copycats. Citing an FBI study, Tufekci says that would-be shooters often seek inspiration from past attacks.

The media can limit the flow of inspiration, Tufekci says, by voluntarily monitoring what information is disseminated. What’s more, “psychiatrists agree with the FBI’s conclusion and statistical studies.”

Eight years ago after the shootings at Virginia Tech, “the American Psychiatric Association weighed in, saying that ‘the scientific evidence in this area is clear.’” Specifically, the “APA said that publicizing these materials ‘seriously jeopardizes the public’s safety by potentially inciting ‘copycat’ suicides, homicides and other incidents.’”

Related Links:

— “The Virginia Shooter Wanted Fame. Let’s Not Give It to Him.,” Zeynep Tufekci, New York Times, August 27, 2015.

HealthDay (8/27, Preidt) reports that investigators “say emotional turmoil is common for women whose mammogram falsely suggests they have breast cancer.” The study, which included “nearly 400 such cases found that 88 percent of the women said they felt a sense of dejection, such as being uneasy, sad or unable to cope; 83 percent reported anxiety; 67 percent said they had behavioral changes, such as trouble dealing with spare time or work; and 53 percent suffered sleeping problems.” The findings were published in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention.

Related Links:

— “False-Positive Mammogram Result Traumatic for Most Women: Study,” Robert Preidt, HealthDay, August 25, 2015.

NBC News (8/27, Fox) reports on two studies published in JAMA Psychiatry that examine the effect of marijuana on the brain. In the first study, “David Pagliaccio, formerly of Washington University in St. Louis and now at the National Institute of Mental Health, and colleagues” compared the brains of marijuana users to non-users.

The results seemed to suggest that marijuana users “had some shrinkage in two brain regions called the amygdala and the right ventral striatum,” but when researchers compared marijuana users to their siblings, “the differences disappeared.” Meanwhile, a second study “found that marijuana appears to change the brain structure of young men with a high genetic risk of schizophrenia.” Dr. David Goldman, of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, said the studies don’t offer a clear picture of anything, adding, “It’s probably more a story of what we don’t know than what we do know.”

According to HealthDay (8/27, Thompson), Dr. Goldman wrote, “The burden of cannabis’ effects may fall more heavily on people who, because of genetic makeup or early life exposures, are at greatest risk for brain structural changes, psychosis or addiction.” He added “It is safer not to expose people to psychoactive drugs.”

Related Links:

— “Marijuana Doesn’t Shrink Brains, But It Can Change Them, Studies Find,” Maggie Fox, NBC News, August 27, 2015.

Reuters (UK) (8/26, Doyle) reports that a research letter published online Aug. 25 in the Journal of the American Medical Association suggests that US combat veterans who have seen action in Afghanistan and Iraq and who were separated from military service because of misconduct appear to have an increased likelihood of being homeless.

Researchers arrived at this conclusion after analyzing data on some 448,290 separations from the military of active-duty service members who were deployed in Iraq or Afghanistan and went on later to avail themselves of services offered by the Veterans Health Administration. An expert who had no involvement in the study pointed out that mental health disorders may play both a role in why such veterans were discharged for misconduct and why they are homeless.

Related Links:

— “Veterans discharged for misconduct have higher risk of homelessness,” Kathryn Doyle, Reuters, August 25, 2015.

According to the Wall Street Journal (8/26, Kesling, Subscription Publication), a report (pdf) from the Department of Veterans Affairs’ inspector general finds that even after an extensive hiring push, the agency still has an insufficient number of full-time psychiatrists to keep up with demand and current staff is not being used efficiently.

Related Links:

— “Report: VA Falls Short on Mental-Health Care Despite Hiring Push,” Ben Kesling, Wall Street Journal, August 25, 2015.