Psychiatric News (2/6) reports, “Genetics play a strong role in the development of avoidant restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID),” investigators concluded in a twin “study population” that “consisted of 33,902 children born between 1992 and 2010,” some 682 of whom “met the criteria for ARFID based on the DSM-5.” The study suggested that “ARFID is more heritable than other eating disorders.” The findings were published online Feb. 1 in JAMA Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “One Eating Disorder Found to Be More Heritable Than Others, Psychiatric News, February 6, 2023

Healio (2/4, Liptak) reported, “Depression and high quantity of poor mental health days are independently associated with premature CVD and suboptimal CV health in young people,” researchers concluded in the findings of a 593,616-young adult study published online ahead of print in the Journal of the American Heart Association.

Related Links:

— “Young adults with depression, poor mental health at greater CVD risk “Holly Liptak, Healio, February 4, 2023

The American Journal of Managed Care (2/3, Gavidia) reported, “Prevalence of psychiatric comorbidity, emergency care usage, and inpatient psychiatric admissions were shown to be substantial among veterans with drug-resistant epilepsy (DRE), with women especially affected,” according to “a comprehensive retrospective analysis of a Veterans Health Administration (VHA)–wide sample” comprising 52,579 patients. Also, these results published online in Epilepsy & Behavior showed that “of the psychiatric comorbidities reported, depression (51.7%) was the most common diagnostic category, followed by posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD; 38.8%) and anxiety (38.0%).”

Related Links:

— “Veterans With Drug-Resistant Epilepsy Show High Prevalence of Psychiatric Burden “Matthew Gavidia, AJMC, February 3, 2023

According to the Wall Street Journal (2/5, Frosch, Subscription Publication), across the US, both legislators and governors from many states and from both political parties are calling for increases in mental health funding to deal with shortages in services and staffing.

Related Links:

— “More Money for Mental-Health Programs Gets Bipartisan Support in Many States “Dan Frosch, Wall Street Journal, February 5, 2023

Healio (2/2, Herpen) reports, “For older adults with dementia and comorbid depression, receiving electroconvulsive therapy” (ECT) “does not worsen the trajectory of functional outcomes,” investigators concluded in a study that included “147 participants aged 65 years and older with continuous coverage in the study interval, a diagnosis of major depressive disorder along with Alzheimer’s disease or related dementias and who were hospitalized between January 2014 and September 2015,” along with “a separate cohort of 415 controls” that “were not given ECT.” The findings were published online Jan. 25 in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “ECT does not worsen functional outcomes in those with depression, dementia “Robert Herpen, Healio, February 2, 2023