HealthDay (10/21, Preidt) reported, “Cyberbullying is rarely the only factor behind teen suicides, according to a small study” presented Oct. 20 at the American Academy of Pediatrics’ national conference. “For the study, the investigators analyzed 41 suicide cases in Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States.”

MedPage Today (10/21, Neale) reported, “Of 41 cyberbullying-related suicides covered in the news since 2003, the victims were subjected to both online and in-person abuse in 78%,” the study found. “Another 17% involved cyberbullying only and 5% involved traditional in-person bullying only,” researchers reported.

Medscape (10/21, Helwick) reported, “Cyberbullying is defined as bullying using electronic means — primarily the Web and text messaging. It is an extension of traditional bullying, but with the additional element of electronic media, which creates some distance between the bully and his or her target,” the study’s lead author explained. “A marked increase was noted in cyberbullying-related suicides in recent years. Only two or fewer cases occurred per year between 2003 and 2007; this jumped to six in 2008, peaked at 13 in 2011, and was reported at five for the first three months of 2012,” according to the study’s lead author.

Related Links:

— “Cyberbullying Rarely Single Factor in Teen Suicides: Study, “Robert Preidt, HealthDay, October 22, 2012.

The Hill (10/19, Cox) “Floor Action” blog reported that Sen. Patty Murray of Washington, chairwoman of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, wants Defense Secretary Panetta “to move to the next step on a timeline for a military-wide review of PTSD and behavioral health diagnoses made since the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.” Panetta “promised to follow up” after some service members were told they didn’t have PTSD by a doctor “trying to keep expenses down” at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, but Murray “said…that the investigation seems to have stalled since being announced on June 13.”

Related Links:

— “Murray seeks answers from Defense on review of PTSD diagnoses, “Ramsey Cox, The Hill, October 19, 2012.

The Time (10/19, Szalavitz) “Healthland” blog reports, “A new study of teenage girls” published online in the journal of Clinical Psychological Science “shows that ‘targeted rejection,’ in which students are singled out for taunting or personally rejected by a friend, can have measurable effects on the immune system.” In their study of 147 young women aged 15 to 19, investigators “found that girls who had recently been targeted for rejection — which can include everything from bullying and ostracizing to being ‘dropped’ by a peer group or friend — had higher levels of substances indicating activation of genes that produce two specific inflammatory proteins, nuclear factor kappa-beta and inhibitor of kappa-beta.” According to the blog, “If sustained, these changes can increase risk for diabetes, heart disease, stroke, mental illness and some cancers later in life, even among those considered to be at the top of the teen social hierarchy.”

Related Links:

— “How Teen Rejection Can Lead to Chronic Disease Later in Life,”Maia Szalavitz, TIME, October 18, 2012.

Reuters (10/19, Norton) reports that according to a study published online Sept. 18 in the International Journal of Obesity, the number of people in the US who are severely obese has risen by 70% over the past decade. However, the study also notes that the rise in the obesity rate has slowed down in recent years. From 2000 to 2010, the percentage of people in the US who were severely obese grew from 4% to nearly 7%. The article notes that more than one-third of American adults are considered obese.

Study: Motivational Counseling Helps Slow Pregnancy Weight Gain In Obese Women. Reuters (10/19, Grens) reports that according to a study published online Oct. 2 in the International Journal of Obesity, motivational counseling can help to curb weight gain in obese pregnant women. By the end of their pregnancies, obese women who received counseling gained approximately 23 pounds, while obese women receiving standard care during their pregnancy gained almost 30 pounds. The study examined 205 obese pregnant women who were randomly assigned to get either motivational counseling on exercise, nutrition, and weight gain, or standard prenatal care.

Related Links:

— “Severe obesity still rising fast in the U.S, “Amy Norton, Reuters, October 18, 2012.

The Los Angeles Times (10/19, Ogilvie) reports that while “head injuries are dangerous to adults…they’re even more concerning when they happen over and over again to children.” The Times points out that “in youth sports, concussions are not uncommon — according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 7.2% of football-related visits to the emergency room for kids under the age of 19 were for concussions.” Now, “parents, teachers and coaches are looking for ways to make” sports safer for children, particularly with regard to head injuries.

Related Links:

— “Concussion worries are not just for adult athletes, “Jessica P. Ogilvie, Los Angeles Times, October 20, 2012.