CIDRAP (3/8, Van Beusekom) reports researchers analyzed “the medical records of 558,672” Americans with COVID-19, and found that “intellectual disability is second only to old age as a risk factor for” death from COVID-19, according to a commentary published in the New England Journal of Medicine. Meanwhile, a study published in the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report found that “obesity is linked to coronavirus-related hospitalization and death.

Related Links:

— “Intellectual disability, obesity tied to COVID-19 hospitalization, death “Mary Van Beusekom, CIDRAP News, March 8, 2021

Healio (3/5, Downey) reported, “Current and past prescription opioid misuse were associated with increases in the risk for suicide-related behaviors and experiences among U.S. high schoolers,” researchers concluded after calculating “prevalence estimates of prescription opioid misuse and suicide risk behaviors in the past 12 months among high school students” by obtaining “data on 13,677 U.S. high school students who participated in the 2019 National Youth Risk Behavior Survey.” The findings were published online ahead of print in Pediatrics.

Related Links:

— “Opioid misuse among high schoolers associated with increased risk for suicidal behaviors “Ken Downey Jr., Healio, March 5, 2021

Psychiatric News (3/5) reported, “More than half of college students meet the criteria for one or more mental health conditions,” investigators concluded after analyzing “2016-2019 data from the Healthy Minds Study, an annual web-based survey.” Survey “data were drawn from 10,089 students from 23 community colleges and 95,711 students from 133 four-year institutions.” The findings were published online March 4 in Psychiatric Services, a publication of the American Psychiatric Association.

Related Links:

— “, Psychiatric News, March 5, 2021

NBC News (3/8) reports on how TV news stories about the coronavirus vaccination effort “are all illustrated with footage of needles sinking into exposed upper arms,” and “more than causing squeamish people to look away or change the channel, researchers say such illustrations could hamper efforts to get a broad swath of U.S. residents vaccinated.” APA President Jeffrey Geller said, “Some people avoid needles because of fear of pain, some from fear of fainting. And some people do faint.” Meanwhile, “Public health messaging should avoid drawings that exaggerate the size of needles or syringes, ‘which are not helpful,’ said Geller, noting that the covid vaccinations involve ‘a small syringe and needle.’”

Related Links:

— “Fear of needles may keep many people away from Covid vaccines “Julie Appleby, NBC News, March 8, 2021

HealthDay (3/4, Preidt) reports researchers followed “1,670 students at 11 public high schools in central and northeastern Ohio…for two years” and found that “overall, the students’ motivation to learn improved during the study period.” During the study period, “the percentage of students who had no motivation to do well in school fell from nearly 3% in the first year to about 2% in the second year,” and “the percentage of students who were self-motivated to learn rose from 8% in the first year to over 11% in the second year.” The findings were published in the Journal of Educational Psychology.

Related Links:

— “Is Your Teen Unmotivated at School? That Might Change “Robert Preidt, HealthDay, March 4, 2021