Reuters (2/25, Grens) reports that data collected by the US Department of Agriculture’s Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion found from a national survey showed that 18 percent of men and 11 percent of women consume more alcohol on any given day that exceeds the limit called for in Federal guidelines. According to the study published in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, 64 percent of men and 79 percent of women did not drink any alcohol on the surveyed date and 18 percent of men and 10 percent of women drank within the recommend amounts of two alcoholic drinks a day for men and one for women. Approximately 8 percent of men and 3 percent of women were considered heavy drinkers, meaning they had at least five and four drinks, respectively, on the date surveyed.

Related Links:

— “Study says too many Americans still drink too much,”Kerry Grens, Reuters, February 25, 2013.

Medwire (2/25, Cowen) reports that “children with atopic dermatitis (AD) are at significantly increased risk for mental health disorders,” according to the results of a 172,309-patient study published in the February issue of the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. After “analysing data from 2007 National Survey of Children’s Health (NSCH), Eric Simpson (Oregon Health and Science University, Portland) and team found that children with AD were significantly more likely to have a variety of mental health disorders than those without the skin disorder.” In addition, the study authors “found that increased severity of AD was associated with a greater risk for mental health disorders.”

Related Links:

— “Mental health risk increased in children with atopic dermatitis, “Mark Cowen, MedWIre News, February 25, 2013.

A research letter indicating that drug overdose deaths are still on the rise in the US garnered moderate coverage, mostly online, as well as on one of last night’s national news broadcasts. Many articles point to the continued role opioids have had in this trend.

ABC World News (2/19, story 6, 0:30, Sawyer) reported, “Today, we learned that for the 11th straight year, the number of deaths due to drug overdoses went up.”

The Los Angeles Times (2/20, Serna) “Booster Shots” blog reports, “According to a research letter…from the National Center for Health Statistics” published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, “38,329 people died of drug overdoses in the United States in 2010, an uptick from the previous year and the latest sign of a deadly trend involving prescription painkillers.” About three-quarters “of all prescription drug deaths were accidental, statistics show.” Just “17% of overdoses were suicides.”

The AP (2/20, Tanner, Stobbe) reports that according to Dr. Thomas Frieden, head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “The big picture is that this is a big problem that has gotten much worse quickly.” As was the case “in previous recent years, opioid drugs – which include OxyContin [oxycodone] and Vicodin [acetaminophen and hydrocodone] – were the biggest problem, contributing to 3 out of 4 medication overdose deaths.” The AP adds, “Frieden said many doctors and patients don’t realize how addictive these drugs can be, and that they’re too often prescribed for pain that can be managed with less risky drugs.”

In a very brief article, the New York Times (2/20, Tavernise, Subscription Publication) reports, “Prescription drugs were involved in more than half of all overdoses, with 22,134 deaths from them.”

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (2/20, Fauber) reports, “In addition to the overdose deaths, there were 425,000 emergency department visits for misuse or abuse of opioids, including overdoses, up from 166,338 in 2004, said Chris Jones, a CDC researcher and lead author of the paper.” The fatalities “and emergency room visits follow a fourfold increase in opioid sales since 1999, Jones noted.”

MedPage Today (2/20, Fiore) reports, “Antidepressants were involved in 13.4% of prescription opioid-related deaths, followed by anti-epileptic and anti-parkinsonism drugs at 6.8%, and antipsychotics and neuroleptics at 4.7%.” According to the researchers, the report “confirms the predominant role opioid analgesics play in pharmaceutical overdose deaths, either alone or in combination with other drugs,” but also “highlights the frequent involvement of drugs typically prescribed for mental health conditions, such as benzodiazepines, antidepressants, and antipsychotics in overdose deaths.”

Medscape (2/20) reports that the researchers “also note that individuals with mental illness ‘are at increased risk for heavy therapeutic use, nonmedical use, and overdose of opioids.'”

Related Links:

— “Fatal drug overdoses in U.S. increase for 11th consecutive year,”Joseph Serna, Los Angeles Times, February 19, 2013.

Medwire (2/20) reports, “Perinatal mood episodes are highly prevalent in women with bipolar disorder [BD] and recurrent major depression,” according to a 1,785-woman study published in the February issue of JAMA Psychiatry. “Of the [980] women with bipolar I disorder, the lifetime prevalence of a mood episode in the perinatal period was 69.5%. Similarly, 69.0% of [232] women with bipolar II disorder and 67.4% of [573] women with recurrent major depression were affected by a mood episode during pregnancy or the postpartum period.”

Related Links:

— “Perinatal episodes prevalent in women with mood disorders,”medwireNews Reporters, February 20, 2013.

USA Today (2/20, Kennedy) reports, “Medicare consumers with bipolar disorder or schizophrenia are hospitalized less often if they maintain access to their medications when they hit the coverage gap for prescription drugs, according to a study” published Feb. 19 in the American Journal of Managed Care. The study of “87,747 patients with bipolar disorder and 92,523 with schizophrenia” revealed that “hospitalization rates…were highest for patients with no gap coverage.” The study authors argued that the US “would save money by closing the prescription drug ‘doughnut hole’ and by having more patients use generic instead of brand-name” medications.

Related Links:

— “Report: Mental health drugs vital for Medicare patients, “Kelly Kennedy, USA Today, February 19, 2013.