The NBC News (8/26, Carroll) website reports, “Teens who used a concentrated form of marijuana – sometimes called dabs, wax, shatter or crumble – are more likely to also use other drugs than kids who avoid marijuana,” researchers concluded after surveying nearly “50,000 adolescents in Arizona.” Investigators “found that among teens who used any form of cannabis, 72 percent had experience with the more potent products.” The findings were published online in Pediatrics. HealthDay (8/26, Thompson) also covers the study.

Related Links:

— “Teens who use concentrated marijuana more likely to use other drugs, “Linda Carroll, NBC, August 26, 2019

Medscape (8/26, Subscription Publication) features a transcript of a discussion on suicide prevention at the American Psychiatric Association meeting in San Francisco between Dr. Jeffrey A. Lieberman and American Foundation for Suicide Prevention Medical Director Dr. Christine Moutier. Dr. Moutier said science is “shedding light” on “what drives suicide risk and what really constitutes effective suicide prevention efforts.” She adds, “Once we know that there are effective treatments and system change that works, it is so important that we translate that science into clinical practice and scale it around the nation.” Dr. Moutier also advocates for safety planning for those with suicidal ideation, in which a doctor “teams up with the patient to help them identify their own warning signs and triggers for crisis and suicide risk, and it outlines a series of steps they can take.”

Related Links:

— Medscape (requires login and subscription)

Healio (8/26, Demko) reports, “Depression-related cognitive deficits in selective attention, working memory and long-term memory persisted into remission from a major depressive episode and worsened with repeated episodes,” research indicated. Included in the meta-analysis were “75 cognitive variables from 252 studies encompassing 11,882 major depressive episode remitters and 8,533 healthy controls.” The findings were published online Aug. 15 in The Lancet Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Cognitive deficits persist into remission of major depressive episodes, “Savannah Demko, Healio, August 26, 2019

HealthDay (8/23) reported a new study by researchers at Penn State suggests that “people with restless legs syndrome (RLS) have nearly three times the risk of suicide and self-harm, which indicates that there may be a link between the physical condition and mental health.” Investigators “analyzed data on more than 24,000 people with RLS and about 145,000 people without the neurological condition. None had a history of suicide attempts or self-harm.” Results indicate that “during the study period, people with RLS had a 2.7-fold higher risk of suicide or self-harm than people without the condition.” The findings were published in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “Restless Legs Syndrome Might Raise Risk of Suicide, Self-Harm, “Robert Preidt, HealthDay, August 23, 2019

Pulmonology Advisor (8/23) reported a new study by researchers at University of Massachusetts Amherst indicates that “following medical marijuana legalization (MML) in Massachusetts in 2012, there was an increase in pediatric cannabis exposure.” Study authors wrote, “The increase occurred despite the cannabis product packaging being designed to be difficult for young children to open, being unappealing to the youth, and requiring warning labels instructing that the product be kept away from children.” The findings were published online in JAMA Network Open.

Related Links:

— “Pediatric Exposure to Cannabis Has Increased Since Medical Legalization, Pulmonology Advisor, August 23, 2019