CNN (12/15, McPhillips) reports, “Substance use among teens – including alcohol, marijuana, vaping and illicit drugs – dropped significantly in 2021, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse’s latest Monitoring the Future survey, published Wednesday.” Study researchers “found the largest single-year decline in illicit drug use since the survey began in 1975, with drops of about 5% from 2020 among eighth- and 12th-graders and nearly 12% among 10th-graders.”

TIME (12/15, Ducharme) reports, “Even with the declines, alcohol remains the most commonly used illegal substance among U.S. teenagers. About 47% of 12th graders and 29% of 10th graders said they consumed alcohol in the past year, compared to 55% and 41% in 2020.”

According to The Hill (12/15, Guzman), “The survey also asked students about their mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic. Students reported moderate increases in feelings of boredom, anxiety, depression, loneliness, worry and difficulty sleeping.”

Related Links:

— “Substance use among teens dropped significantly in 2021, survey finds ” Deidre McPhillips, CNN, December 15, 2021

HealthDay (12/13, Preidt) reports, “Older adults have a higher risk of delirium after hip and knee surgery if they’re taking anxiety, depression or insomnia” medications, researchers concluded after analyzing “data from nearly 10,500 patients aged 65 and older who had knee or hip surgery in the past 20 years.” The study authors posited that “older patients should temporarily stop these medications or switch to safer alternatives before elective surgery.” The findings were published online Nov. 8 in the journal Drug Safety.

Related Links:

— “Certain Meds Raise Odds for Delirium After Surgery “Robert Preid, HealthDay, December 13, 2021

Healio (12/13, Gramigna) reports, “Available evidence does not sufficiently support prescription cannabinoids for treating psychiatric disorders,” researchers concluded after conducting an 841-study review, the findings of which were published online Dec. 8 in the American Journal of Psychiatry, a publication of the American Psychiatric Association.

Related Links:

— “Current evidence does not support prescription cannabinoids for psychiatric disorders “Joe Gramigna, Healio, December 13, 2021

Healio (12/13, Gramigna) reports, “Areas with high levels of social fragmentation had higher rates of psychosis,” investigators concluded in a 19-study systematic review, the findings of which were published online Dec. 7 in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Social fragmentation may increase risk for psychosis “Joe Gramigna, Healio, December 13, 2021

The New York Times (12/13, A1, Cohen) reports the “sense of endlessness, accompanied by growing psychological distress leading to depression” resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, “was a recurrent theme in two dozen interviews conducted in Asia, Europe, Africa and the Americas.” The Times adds that “after two years of zigzagging policy and roller coaster emotions, terrible loss and tantalizing false dawns, closing borders and intermittently shuttered schools,” along with new anxieties over the Omicron variant, “people’s resilience has dwindled.”

Related Links:

— “Across the World, Covid Anxiety and Depression Take Hold “Roger Cohen, The New York Times, December 13, 2021