MD Edge Psychiatry (7/15) reported, “Patients with a history of depression who are also being treated with opioid analgesics have a lower risk for overdose and self-harm after taking antidepressants,” investigators concluded in a study that “analyzed insurance claims for more than 200,000 adults with a history of depression. Of these, 8,200 experienced adverse events…during the year after initiation of opioid therapy.” The findings were published online June 30 in Psychiatric Services, a publication of the American Psychiatric Association.

Related Links:

— “Antidepressants may curb opioid overdose “Batya Swift Yasgur, MD Edge Psychiatry, July 15, 2022

MedPage Today (7/14, George) reports, “Moderate alcohol consumption was linked to higher brain iron and worse cognitive function,” investigators concluded. In fact, “among nearly 21,000 people in the U.K. Biobank cohort, alcohol intake above 7 weekly units (56 g, or about four standard drinks per week in the U.S.) was associated with markers of higher brain iron in multiple basal ganglia regions,” the study revealed. What’s more, “markers of higher brain iron were in turn associated with poorer scores on tests of executive function, fluid intelligence, and reaction speed,” the study concluded. The findings were published online in PLoS Medicine.

Related Links:

— MedPage Today (requires login and subscription)

PatientEngagementHIT (7/14, Heath) reports, “Patient access to care is worse for American men than it is for men in any other similarly developed nation, a trend researchers from the Commonwealth Fund attributed to poorer public health and high healthcare costs.” Also, the data showed “US men have the highest rate of avoidable deaths, are the most likely to have two or more chronic conditions, are among the most likely to have unmet mental health needs, and have the highest rates of hypertension.”

Related Links:

— “How Cost Drives Poor Patient Access to Care for American Men “Sara Heath, PatientEngagementHIT, July 14, 2022

Modern Healthcare (7/14, Devereaux, Subscription Publication) reports the 988 “mental health crisis line launches Saturday with the ambitious goals of reducing emergency department visits and encounters with law enforcement and providing ongoing care for those experiencing mental health crises.” However, aspirations in some states “are a way off from being a reality.” American Psychiatric Association President Rebecca Brendel, MD, JD, said, “What’s different and ambitious about the 988 project is that over time there are goals to have every call to the lifeline answered within local communities as opposed to as part of a national network, and also to couple the availability of call response in communities with a continuum of care to respond to and provide follow up for individuals who contact the lifeline.”

Related Links:

— “States prep for 988 mental health hotline’s national debut “Mari Devereaux, Modern Healthcare, July 14, 2022

HealthDay (7/13, Thompson) reports that “preterm infants who are breastfed do better in school and are less likely to develop attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD),” according to a study published in JAMA Network Open. Overall, researchers “found that higher intake of mother’s milk was associated with higher performance IQ and higher reading and math scores by age 7.” Also, “longer duration of breastfeeding – up to 18 months – was associated with higher reading, spelling and math scores.”

Related Links:

— “Breastfeeding May Be Key to Letting Preemie Babies Thrive “Dennis Thompson, HealthDay, July 13, 2022