The AP (8/5, Dubow) reports the National Football League “sent a memo to teams on Tuesday explaining the decision to ban smelling salts and any other ammonia inhalant (AI) during pregame activities, games and halftime on the sideline or locker rooms.” The memo states, “The FDA noted potential negative effects from AI use. AIs also have the potential to mask certain neurologic signs and symptoms, including some potential signs of concussion. As a result, the NFL Head, Neck, and Spine Committee recommended prohibiting the use of AIs for any purpose during play in the NFL.”

Related Links:

— “NFL bans smelling salts, saying product can mask concussion symptoms,”Josh Dubow , AP, August 5, 2025

Healio (8/5, Herpen) reports a study presented at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference links a history of traumatic brain injury to “long-term cognitive decline involving speech functions, specifically where the presence of amyloid-beta was detected as opposed to other biomarkers indicative of preclinical Alzheimer’s.” Researchers observed that “in those positive for amyloid-beta biomarkers, a history of TBI was associated with accelerated longitudinal decline in speech measured by words per minute and letter fluency as well as word finding, while those without TBI had a slight longitudinal increase across all three domains. Further, they reported a decline of broader executive functions such as digital symbol substitution and trails making test were not accelerated by TBI history.” Conversely, they noted “no significant effect of TBI history on similar decline for participants with history of either apolipoprotein or tauopathies.”

Related Links:

— “TBI linked to long-term cognitive decline in preclinical Alzheimer’s disease,”Robert Herpen, MA , Healio, August 5, 2025

CNN (8/5, Holcombe) reports, “People who experienced physical abuse as a child were at a 50% increased risk of reporting low mental health in adulthood compared with those with no abuse, according to” a study, while “those who experienced verbal abuse had a 60% increase in likelihood of low well-being.” Investigators came to this conclusion after analyzing “data from more than 20,000 adults across seven different studies in England and Wales.” The findings were published in BMJ Open.

Related Links:

— “Childhood verbal and physical abuse leave similar impacts, study shows,”Madeline Holcombe, CNN, August 5, 2025

MedPage Today (8/4, George) reports a study found that “treatment with the antiviral oseltamivir (Tamiflu) was tied to a reduced risk of serious neuropsychiatric events in children and adolescents.” Researchers observed that “compared with untreated flu, the risk of serious neuropsychiatric events was lower in kids treated with oseltamivir during flu exposure periods and post-treatment periods.” Furthermore, the “relative risks of neuropsychiatric events also were low during periods with neither flu exposure nor oseltamivir dispensing and during oseltamivir prophylaxis periods compared with untreated flu.” The findings ultimately “raise questions about warnings on oseltamivir’s label” that states “that some flu patients who receive the drug, particularly pediatric patients, may be at an increased risk of confusion or abnormal behavior early in their illness.” The study authors wrote, “It is important to note that these warnings were placed on the basis of case reports rather than studies on associated risks for these events.” The study was published in JAMA Neurology.

Related Links:

— MedPage Today (requires login and subscription)

The Hill (8/4, Migdon) reports New Hampshire Gov. Kelly Ayotte (R) “signed two bills Friday restricting access to transition-related care in the state, which already prohibits rare genital surgeries for minors to transition.” The first bill “prohibits doctors from administering puberty blockers and hormones to transgender youth starting Jan. 1,” while the second “bars adolescents younger than 18 from undergoing certain procedures when they are used to treat gender dysphoria.” The move makes New Hampshire “the first Northeastern state to ban gender-affirming health care for minors.”

Related Links:

— “New Hampshire becomes first Northeastern state to ban gender-affirming care for minors,”Brooke Migdon, The Hill, August 4, 2025