Medscape (1/28, Franki, Subscription Publication) reports, “The Food and Drug Administration is strengthening a previous warning regarding the uncommon risk of serious bowel complications associated with the schizophrenia medication clozapine.” According to an FDA press release, “clozapine affects bowel function in a majority of patients, and constipation is a common adverse event associated with clozapine use.” These effects “can uncommonly progress to serious bowel complications, including complete bowel blockage, and can result in hospitalization or even death if the constipation is not diagnosed and treated quickly.”

Related Links:

— “FDA Strengthens Bowel Complication Warning for Clozapine, “Lucas Franki, Medscape, January 28, 2020

Reuters (1/27, Carroll) reports that “more than a third of gynecologists don’t screen for” depression in perimenopausal women, according to a study published in Menopause, “even though studies have shown that some 40% of women experience depression as they go through menopause.” Researchers surveyed gynecologists and found that “while most of the gynecologists surveyed said they believed they could recognize depression in perimenopausal women, almost half did not feel confident in their ability to treat depressed patients.” The article mentions that the researchers sent survey invitations to 500 members of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and 206 participated.

Related Links:

— “Depression common in lead-up to menopause, but few gynecologists screen for it, “Linda Carroll, Reuters, January 27, 2020

HealthDay (1/27, Preidt) reports research indicated that “children and teens in U.S. areas with greater levels of poverty face a higher risk of suicide.” Researchers arrived at that conclusion after having “analyzed federal government data on suicides in children and teens aged 5 to 19 that occurred from 2007 to 2016.” What’s more, the study revealed that “youth suicide by guns was 87% more likely in areas with the highest poverty levels.” The findings were published online Jan. 27 in the journal JAMA Pediatrics.

Psychiatric News (1/27) also covers the study.

Related Links:

— “Poverty Could Drive Up Youth Suicide Risk, ” Robert Preidt, HealthDay, January 27, 2020

Medscape (1/27, Anderson, Subscription Publication) reports, “Early life adversity including neglect and physical, emotional, and sexual abuse is the single biggest risk factor for psychiatric disorders,” researchers concluded in “what has been described as a seminal review.” The findings of the review paper were published in the January issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry, a publication of the American Psychiatric Association.

Related Links:

— “Top Risk Factor for Mental Disorders Identified, “Pauline Anderson, Medscape, January 27, 2020

Healio (1/24, Gramigna) reported, “Adolescents who were cyberbullied experienced greater psychiatric symptom severity, including for depression and PTSD,” researchers concluded after collecting and analyzing “data on the prevalence of social media utilization and cyberbullying victimization from 50 inpatients aged 13 to 17 years.” The findings of the “questionnaire-based study” were published online Jan. 14 in Journal of Clinical Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Victims of cyberbullying report higher levels of depression, PTSD, “Joe Gramigna, Healio, January 24, 2020