Medwire (1/5, Robertson) reported, “Diabetes is associated with a significantly increased risk for depressive symptoms,” according to a meta-analysis published online Dec. 26 in the journal Diabetes Research and Clinical Practice. “The findings come from an analysis of 16 longitudinal observational studies that included 497,223 individuals who were followed up for a mean of 5.8 years for incidence of depression associated with diabetes.” The researchers found, “after combining the results of all the studies, and after adjustment for a number of confounders, diabetes was associated with a significantly increased risk for incident depression, at a hazard ratio of 1.25.”

Related Links:

— “Diabetes as a risk factor for depression, “Sally Robertson, Medwire News, January 4, 2013.

USA Today (1/4, Healy) reports, “Mental health problems of expectant fathers have found to be associated with emotional and behavioral problems in their kids as toddlers,” according to a study published online in the journal Pediatrics.

MedPage Today (1/7, Petrochko) reports that the study of 31,663 children “found paternal psychological distress was associated with a small but positive risk of a child developing behavioral difficulties (P=0.02), emotional difficulties (P<0.001), and impaired social functioning at age 36 months (P=0.007)," researchers reported. "Higher levels of emotional distress in expectant fathers were associated with higher levels of emotional and behavioral problems in children," the study found. Among the organizations supporting the study were the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. Related Links:

— “Expectant dads’ mental health linked to kids’ behavior, “Michelle Healy, USA Today, January 7, 2013.

HealthDay (1/4, Preidt) reports that, according to the 2006-2007 Canadian Maternity Experiences Survey published in the December issue of the American Journal of Public Health, “Compared with unmarried women, married women are less likely to experience domestic abuse, substance abuse or postpartum depression around the time of pregnancy.” The 6,400-woman study found that while “10 percent of married women experienced at least one of the problems…the rates were 20 percent for women who lived with a partner but were not married, 35 percent for single women who had never married, and 67 percent for women who became separated or divorced in the year before they gave birth.” The survey found that the longer a woman and her partner cohabitated, the less likely these problems became.

Related Links:

— “Married Women More Likely to Have Positive Pregnancies: Study,”Robert Preidt, HealthDay, January 3, 2013.

CQ (1/4, Ethridge, Subscription Publication) reports that yesterday, “a group of House Democrats called on three Cabinet secretaries…to release a delayed final rule to provide equal insurance coverage for mental health services.” Thirty-two “Democrats, led by Ted Deutch of Florida and Tim Ryan of Ohio, said that last month’s deadly shootings at a Newtown, Conn., elementary school bring ‘newfound urgency’ to ensuring access to mental health care.” For that reason, “they requested the issuance of final rules set in a 2008 mental health law (PL 110-343 (1/4, Subscription Publication)) that would require insurers to offer mental health benefits coverage comparable to other medical benefits.” In February 2010, only an interim final rule was released.

On its front page, the New York Times (1/4, A1, Flegenheimer, Subscription Publication) reports on the psychological toll taken on New York City subway train operators when people jump or are pushed in front of their trains, situations which almost always result in fatalities or hideous injury. Official policy is to give train operators three days off following a fatality, but “many workers involved in fatal hits can take months to return if they go on compensated leave while recovering from trauma or other psychological conditions.” Others may choose to transfer to other jobs or even retire rather than come back to their old job. “Howard Rombom, a psychologist based on Long Island who specializes in fatal subway cases, said an initial hurdle for operators was recognizing they were not at fault.” Support groups and desensitization therapy may help alleviate some operator stress.

Related Links:

— “Subway Deaths Haunt Those at Trains’ Controls,”Matt Flegenheimer, The New York Times, January 3, 2013.