Healio (10/23, Gramigna) reported, “Rural Medicare beneficiaries with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia had worse outcomes than their urban counterparts,” investigators concluded in a study that “sought to outline trajectories and survival of hospital, nursing home, hospice and home health care use among 555,333 Medicare beneficiaries with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia in the six years following diagnosis.” The findings of the “retrospective cohort study” were published online in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “Rural Medicare beneficiaries with Alzheimer’s disease, dementia have worse outcomes “Joe Gramigna, Healio, October 23, 2020

HealthDay (10/23, Reinberg) reported, “More regular moderate to vigorous physical activity and less sedentary time improve the mental and physical health of older cancer survivors and older people without a cancer diagnosis, say researchers from the American Cancer Society.” Researchers “analyzed aerobic and muscle-strengthening activities, sitting time and mental and physical health of nearly 78,000 people who took part in the society’s Cancer Prevention Study II Nutrition Cohort,” and “found clinically meaningful differences in mental and physical health between the most and least active, and the least and most sedentary.” The findings were published in Cancer.

Related Links:

— “Exercise Boosts Physical Mental Well-Being of Older Cancer Survivors, HealthDay, October 23, 2020

According to the AP (10/23, Stobbe), 2019 saw the US suicide rate drop slightly, “the first annual decline in more than a decade, according to new government data.” The AP adds, “Experts aren’t sure how the coronavirus will influence this year’s suicide numbers, though American mortality overall is looking far bleaker.”

Related Links:

— “US suicide rate fell last year after decade of steady rise “Mike Stobbe, AP, October 23, 2020

According to Healio (10/22, Michael), valproate use “during pregnancy was associated with an increased risk for neurodevelopmental disorders in offspring during early childhood.” investigators concluded after analyzing “data from the French national health data system” that “included singleton livebirths that occurred from January 2011 through December 2014.” The findings were published online Oct. 22 in Scientific Reports.

Related Links:

— “Antiepileptic drug exposure in pregnancy linked to neurodevelopmental disorders “Erin Michael, Healio, October 22, 2020

Healio (10/22, Gramigna) reports, “An increase in green space may improve children’s mental health,” investigators concluded after seeking “to examine the effects of several environmental factors, including artificial light at night…near-roadway air pollution,” noise “and green space, on self-reported stress among 2,290 children living in eight densely populated urban communities in southern California.” The findings of the “cohort study” were published online in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “More green space may improve children’s mental health “Joe Gramigna, Healio, October 22, 2020