Healio (6/29, Gramigna) reports, “Antipsychotic-naive patients with first-episode psychosis exhibited widespread functional dysconnectivity at baseline,” researchers concluded in a “secondary analysis of a randomized clinical trial” that included data on “59 antipsychotic-naive patients with first-episode psychosis receiving either a second-generation antipsychotic or a placebo…over six months of treatment,” as well as 27 healthy individuals who served as controls. Study participants underwent resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging at “baseline, three months and 12 months…with data analysis between May 2019 and August 2020.” The findings were published online June 23 in JAMA Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Functional dysconnectivity ‘widespread’ in antipsychotic-naive first-episode psychosis “Joe Gramigna, Healio, June 29, 2021

Healio (6/28, Gramigna) reports, “Young adults with or without depression who used cannabis had higher prevalence of suicidal ideation, plan and attempt,” investigators concluded after conducting “a survey study using data from 281,650 adults aged 18 to 34 years who participated in the National Surveys on Drug Use and Health, with data collection between 2008 and 2019.” The study also revealed that “past-year cannabis use disorder, daily cannabis use and nondaily cannabis use were associated with a higher prevalence of past-year suicidal ideation, plan and attempt among both sexes; however, women were more affected than men.” The findings were published online June 22 in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “Young adults who use cannabis have higher rates of suicidal ideation, plan and attempt “Joe Gramigna, Healio, June 28, 2021

Psychiatric News (6/28) reports, “More research on the prevention of suicide among Black youth is urgently needed, yet clinicians can and should address suicidality within this population in their practices now, according to two viewpoints published” online June 28 in JAMA Pediatrics. The authors of one viewpoint contend that “over the past several decades, data have clearly illustrated the rising trend of suicide among Black youth.” The editorialists “suggest a mixture of quantitative and qualitative methodology, such as interviews and focus groups with youth, families, and clinicians, to better understand culturally relevant risk and protective factors.” The authors of the second viewpoint “emphasized the importance of universal screenings for suicidality across health care settings, but they noted that clinicians should be aware that suicidality and risk factors may differ for Black youth compared with other groups.”

Related Links:

— “Research to Prevent Suicide of Black Youth Must Take Ground Zero Approach, Say Experts, Psychiatric News, June 28, 2021

The New York Times (6/28, Caron) reports that “interviews with mental health [professionals] and data from hospitals across the country reveal that while [professionals] are continuing to see a surge in teenagers visiting the emergency room for mental health problems, the number of children in crisis under the age of 13 is also on the rise, and has been for years.” Even prior to the pandemic, “a mental health crisis was brewing among children struggling with bullying, abuse, eating disorders, racism or undiagnosed mental health conditions.” Children are now “facing even more stressors, like the loss of a family member to Covid-19, adjusting to remote school or the anxiety of returning to in-person school.”

Related Links:

— “8-Year-Olds in Despair: The Mental Health Crisis Is Getting Younger “Christina Caron, The New York Times, June 28, 2021

HCPlive (6/26, Alicea) reported research “indicates that simultaneous treatment with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) and second-generation antipsychotics (SGAs) for mental health disorders in children may have negative impacts on cardiometabolic health.” The 569-patient study consisted of four cohorts: “SSRI and SGA treatment-naïve (n = 242), SSRI only (n = 123), SGA only (n = 112), and SSRI + SGA (n = 92).” The findings were presented at the American Diabetes Association’s (ADA) 81st Scientific Sessions (virtual).

Related Links:

— “Antidepressant Plus Antipsychotic Use Linked to Cardiometabolic Complications “Jonathan Alicea, HCPlive, June 26, 2021