Healio (6/4, Cooper ) reports a study found that “patients with Sjögren’s disease demonstrate a ‘pronounced risk’ for attempting suicide, with a hazard ratio of 18.054 compared with a general population cohort.” Researchers observed the “incidence rate of suicide attempts was statistically significantly higher among patients with Sjögren’s disease: 0.247 per 100 person-years vs. 0.014 in the comparison group. In a fully adjusted Cox regression, patients with Sjögren’s disease had a hazard ratio of 18.054for suicide attempts vs. the comparison group.” Researchers noted, “It is not uncommon for individuals with [Sjögren’s syndrome] to experience a decline in [health-related quality of life] to levels likened to, or even worse than, death.” They added, “These revelations bear significant weight for health care practitioners tending to patients with Sjögren’s syndrome, arming them with empirical evidence to counsel patients on the heightened suicide attempt risks.” The study was published in Scientific Reports.

Related Links:

— “Patients with Sjögren’s disease demonstrate significant risk for suicide attempt,”Justin Cooper, Healio, June 4, 2025

Psychiatric News (6/4) reports panelists discussed “the potential of glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists to treat neuropsychiatric disorders such as cognitive dysfunction and alcohol use disorder” at the American Society of Clinical Psychopharmacology’s annual meeting in Phoenix. One panelist said GLP-1 medications do not increase resting metabolic rate or promote physical activity, but “they do have a very robust signal in reducing caloric intake.” Furthermore, “these medications are believed to modulate the rewarding aspects of food – and potentially other substances.” A recent Phase 2 trial “found that weekly low-dose semaglutide significantly reduced the amount of alcohol consumed by adults with alcohol use disorder during a self-administration task taken after four weeks of treatment.” Another recent randomized trial “found no difference in executive function scores between the semaglutide and placebo groups. However, the researchers did find a statistical improvement in global cognition for semaglutide compared with placebo – suggesting it may work in other cognitive domains.”

Related Links:

— “Researchers Look to Unlock GLP-1 Drugs’ Potential in Psychiatry, Psychiatric News , June 4, 2025

HealthDay (5/29, Gotkine) reports a study found that “overdose deaths attributable to synthetic opioids alone are increasingly predominant” among US youth. Researchers found that between 2018 and 2022, overdose death counts among US youth aged 15 to 24 years “increased from 4,652 to 6,723 (10.85 to 15.16 per 100,000), with a slight decrease between 2021 and 2022. Deaths involving synthetic opioids only showed the largest increases (1.8 to 4.8 deaths per 100,000).” They noted that “regardless of race, ethnicity, or sex, fatal synthetic opioid-only overdose rates were higher than polydrug overdose rates involving synthetic opioids since 2020. In 2022, rates of synthetic-only overdose deaths were 2.49- and 2.15-times higher among male versus female youth and among those aged 20 to 24 versus 15 to 19 years, respectively.” The study was published in Pediatrics.

Related Links:

— “Youth Deaths Attributable to Synthetic Opioids Alone Increasingly Predominant,”Elana Gotkine, HealthDay, May 29, 2025

The New York Times (6/2, Span ) reports that a “wave of recent research points to reasons for concern for older users, with cannabis-related emergency room visits and hospitalizations rising.” An analysis of national survey data published Monday in JAMA found that cannabis use within the past 30 days “jumped among adults over age 65, to 7 percent of respondents in 2023 from 4.8 percent in 2021.” Studies also show “climbing rates of older people seeking medical treatment for cannabis-related issues, both in outpatient settings and in hospitals.” For example, “cannabis-related emergency room visits In California by those over 65 rose, to about 395 per 100,000 visits in 2019, from 21 in 2005.” Meanwhile, a recent study published in JAMA Neurology found that older patients with cannabis-related conditions seeking care at emergency departments or being admitted to hospitals “had 1.5 times the risk of a dementia diagnosis within five years, and 3.9 times the risk for the general population.”

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— The New York Times (requires login and subscription)

The Washington Post (6/2, McMahan) reports a study suggests that “at age 11, daily physical activity was associated with a 12 percent lower risk of a psychiatric diagnosis at age 18 for every hour of activity recorded.” Researchers observed that “physical activity decreased the risk of anxiety by almost 40 percent for boys at both 5 and 11.” Notably, the “same held true for depression and boys: Physical activity was associated with a 19 percent reduction in depression among boys at age 5 and 23 percent at age 8.” They found that “at age 11, physical activity was associated with a decreased risk for depression for both boys and girls. Participation in organized sports at age 11 correlated with a reduced risk of mental health diagnoses – 12 percent lower for girls and 23 percent for boys.” The researchers concluded “that ages 10 to 12 might be a critical period for the development of psychological resilience.” The study was published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine.

Related Links:

— “The Washington Post (requires login and subscription)