MD Magazine (2/21, Rosenfeld) reported, “Varenicline, an effective medication for smoking cessation, was not associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular or neuropsychiatric hospitalizations compared with nicotine replacement therapy,” research indicated. In comparison, “bupropion, a smoking cessation aid and antidepressant, was linked with lower risks of cardiovascular hospitalizations and higher risks of neuropsychiatric hospitalizations compared with nicotine replacement therapy.” Included in the 618,500-patient study were 454,698 who “used varenicline,” 131,562 who “used bupropion, and 32,237” who “used nicotine replacement therapy.” The findings were published online Feb. 19 in the journal Addiction.

Related Links:

— “Varenicline Safe for Smoking Cessation, Reduces Hospitalization Risk, “Samara Rosenfeld, MD Magazine, February 21, 2020

Politico (2/20, Ehley) reports, “The Trump administration’s war on addiction has left behind an oft forgotten piece of the problem: alcoholism and the lifelong damage it can do to children.” The Administration “has boosted treatment, research and prevention, including directing millions to help babies exposed to narcotics in the womb.” But, there has “been no similar help or attention from Washington to pregnant women who abuse alcohol, or to the children impacted by fetal alcohol syndrome.”

Related Links:

— “Harmed before birth, America’s ‘lost children’ overshadowed by opioid crisis, “Brianna Ehley, Politico, February 20, 2020

Psychiatric News (2/20) reports research indicates that patients with schizophrenia “who participate in a 12-week aerobic exercise program may continue to experience cognitive benefits months after the program ends.” For the study, investigators randomized 40 “participants with schizophrenia and other schizoaffective disorders aged 20 to 65” to “treatment as usual, which consisted of meetings with a psychiatrist, medication, case management, and rehabilitation programs over a 12-week period” or to “a 12-week aerobic exercise program in addition to receiving treatment as usual.” A year after the study ended, researchers found that “compared with the group that received treatment as usual only, those who also participated in aerobic exercise classes ‘showed significant, sustained improvements in several cognitive domains [including working memory, verbal fluency, attention, and executive function].’” The findings were published online ahead of print in the April issue of Psychiatric Research.

Related Links:

— “Cognitive Benefits of Exercise in Patients With Schizophrenia Sustained Over One Year, Study Shows, Psychiatric News, February 20, 2020

Psychiatric News (2/19) reports, “Two-thirds of children and adolescents who had to stay in an emergency department (ED) for at least 24 hours with a mental health complaint had suicidal thoughts or behaviors, yet many did not receive a formal psychiatric evaluation by a psychiatrist with treatment recommendations,” investigators concluded after analyzing “data on 573 children and adolescents (average age of 14) who stayed at least 24 hours with a mental health complaint at one urban pediatric ED.” The findings were published online Feb. 17 in a research letter in JAMA Pediatrics.

Related Links:

— “Youth Who Stay in ED Overnight for Mental Health Problems Often Discharged Without Psychiatric Evaluation, Psychiatric News, February 19, 2020

Healio (2/19, Michael) reports, “Women with anxiety, depression and trauma were more likely to use cannabis during pregnancy,” researchers concluded after comparing “demographic and mental health characteristics in women with and without cannabis use during pregnancy who gave birth at centers in the Kaiser Permanente Northern California system between 2012 and 2017.” To do so, the investigative team used electronic health records. The study revealed that of six percent “of 196,022 pregnancies evaluated in the study…screened positive for prenatal cannabis.” Investigators then “determined that the odds of cannabis use during pregnancy were greater among women with anxiety disorders…depressive disorders” or both when “compared with women without those disorders.” The findings were published online Feb. 19 in a research letter in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “Depression, anxiety, trauma linked to cannabis use in pregnancy, “Erin Michael, Healio, February 19, 2020