Psychiatric News (1/9) reports that in an paper published in the Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine, “researchers at the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) are reporting that a set of four questions that emergency department (ED) physicians or nurses can ask successfully identifies youth who are at risk for attempting suicide.” In 17 young people ranging in age from 10 to 21 who presented with either a psychiatric or surgical/medical issue at the ED, researchers “found that four of the questions used as a set accurately predicted suicide attempts. The questions asked about ‘current thoughts of being…better off dead, current wish to die, current suicidal ideation, and history of suicide attempt.'” A positive answer to one or more of these four questions identified 97% of the young people at risk for suicide, investigators reported.

Related Links:

— “Four Simple Questions Identify Youth at Risk of Suicide,Psychiatric News Alert, January 8, 2013.

The New York Times (1/9, A11, Carey, Subscription Publication) reports, “Most adolescents who plan or attempt suicide have already received at least some mental health treatment, raising questions about the effectiveness of current approaches to helping troubled youths, according to the largest in-depth analysis to date of suicidal behaviors in American teenagers.” In the study, published in JAMA Psychiatry, researchers “found that 55 percent of suicidal teenagers had received some therapy before they thought about suicide, planned it or tried to kill themselves, contradicting the widely held belief that suicide is due in part to a lack of access to treatment.” The study’s findings were “based on interviews with a nationwide sample of more than 6,000 teenagers and at least one parent of each.”

Bloomberg News (1/9, Lopatto) reports, “Of all the mental disorders, only major depression and dysthymia, a type of chronic depression, predicted a suicide plan. Those two illnesses, as well as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, conduct disorder, eating disorders and intermittent explosive disorder also suggested a higher risk of suicide attempts,” the study found.

Related Links:

— “Study Questions Effectiveness of Therapy for Suicidal Teenagers, “Benedict Carey, Teh New York Times, January 8, 2013.

In collaboration with NPR, Kaiser Health News (1/8, Gold) reports, “Over the past decade, colleges and universities across the country have seen an influx of students…with mental health needs.” In fact, “the average college counseling center sees about 10 percent of the student body each year.” For that reason, “some campuses are exploring new systems to help meet the growing demand.” The article explains how the University of Virginia’s counseling center employs a triage system so as many students can be seen as possible, considering the fact that UVA’s center has only 12 therapists who work full time.

Related Links:

— “Triage System Helps Colleges Treat Mentally Ill Students, “Jenny Gold, Kaiser Health News, January 7, 2013.

Bloomberg News (1/8, Lopatto, Cortez) reports, “Former National Football League players suffer more depression than ordinary people, according to research that may explain recent suicides in the group,” according to a study published online Jan. 7 in JAMA Neurology. In the “study of 34 retired NFL players, about 25 percent suffered with clinical depression, higher than the 15 percent seen in the general population.”

On its website, CBS News (1/8, Jaslow) reports that the study “adds to the evidence that repeated head blows absorbed during a football career could lead to changes in the brain that affect the athletes’ behavior.” Both “neurological and neuropsychological tests,” along with 26 detailed brain scans taken of study participants, revealed that “players were more likely to report cognitive impairment and depression and show physical brain changes on an MRI scan, compared to healthy individuals.”

The CNN (1/7, Smith) “The Chart” blog explains that “it was problems with white matter among players that caught study authors’ interest.” That is because “White matter is brain tissue that acts as a sort of conveyor belt for signals traveling to different brain regions. When white matter is damaged — think about that conveyor belt veering off-course or stopping altogether — problems crop up with cognition, or thinking ability.”

According to MedPage Today (1/8, Walsh), “Disrupted white matter integrity appears to represent a potentially important biomarker for neurobehavioral impairment,” the study authors concluded. An editorial accompanying the study “called for more epidemiologic data on the incidence on chronic traumatic encephalopathy and risk factors.” The editorialists wrote, “Because the symptoms of CTE, such as irritability, depression, and cognitive problems, are protean and nonspecific, biomarkers and neuroimaging to complement the clinical examination will likely be essential and will improve the accuracy of the diagnosis during the lifetime of the individual and will be used to follow the natural history of the illness.”

HealthDay (1/8, Storrs) points out, “The current study did not find a relationship between the number of concussions that a player experienced and whether they went on to develop a cognitive impairment.”

WebMD (1/8, Doheny) notes, “The study was supported by the Brain Health Institute for Athletes and a grant from the National Institute on Aging.” Reuters (1/8, Pittman) also covers the story.

Related Links:

— “NFL Brain Injuries Make Depression More Likely, Study Suggests, “Elizabeth Lopatto, Bloomberg, January 8, 2013.

Medscape (1/5, Brauser) reported, “The American Psychiatric Association (APA) has fired back a strong response to a recent article by the Washington Post questioning the possibility of pharmaceutical industry influence on decisions regarding the upcoming fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5).” David Kupfer, MD, chair of the DSM-5 Task Force, said in a news release(pdf), “While speculation is bound to occur, we think it is important to stay focused on the fact that APA has gone to great lengths to ensure that DSM-5 and APA’s clinical practice guidelines are free from bias.” Dr. Kupfer “noted that no DSM-5 task force or work group member is allowed to have more than $10,000 of his or her annual income to be derived from industry sources, nor are members allowed to hold stock or shares valued at more than $50,000 in a pharmaceutical or device company.”