Healio (10/23, Demko) reports researchers “revealed a connection between past-year prescription opioid and benzodiazepine misuse and past-year suicidal ideation in adults aged 50 years and older in the United States” after examining “data from 17,608 adults aged 50 years and older participating in the 2015 to 2016 National Survey on Drug Use and Health.” Investigators found that “past-year opioid misuse (adjusted OR = 1.84; 95% CI, 1.073.19) and benzodiazepine misuse (aOR = 2; 95% CI, 1.013.94) were significantly linked to past-year suicidal ideation.” The findings were published online Oct. 15 in the International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry.

Related Links:

— “Prescription opioid, benzodiazepine misuse ties to suicidal thoughts in older adults, “Savannah Demko, Healio , October 23, 2018.

Medscape (10/22, Yasgur, Subscription Publication) reports, “Individuals with mental health diagnoses make 25% more visits to the emergency department (ED) than those without mental illness; increases in frequency correspond to illness severity,” researchers concluded after analyzing “data on more than 3.5 million individuals” who “accounted for more than seven million ED visits.” The findings were published online Oct. 19 in JAMA Open Network.

Related Links:

— Medscape (requires login and subscription)

Medscape (10/19, Davenport, Subscription Publication) reported, “Use of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) appears to amplify the living environment of patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) in a dose-dependent manner, so that those in more positive situations are more likely to achieve remission compared with their counterparts living in less favorable conditions,” research indicated. In arriving at that conclusion, investigators examined data from 4,000 adult patients from the STAR*D study. The findings were presented at the 31st European College of Neuropsychopharmacology Congress.

Related Links:

— Medscape (requires login and subscription)

The AP (10/21, Reeves) reported healthcare “workers say they are seeing signs of mental problems in residents more than a week after” Hurricane Michael ravaged parts of Florida, “and the issues could continue as a short-term disaster turns into a long-term recovery that will take years.” Looking back at the psychological aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in Louisiana, researchers found in one study that “five years after the storm, parents reported more than 37 percent of children had been clinically diagnosed with depression, anxiety, or a behavior disorder.” As for adults now struggling in the aftermath of Hurricane Michael, one expert “said most people will be back to where they were within a year or so, but others will have difficulty for a longer period.”

Related Links:

— ““I don’t feel real”: Mental stress mounting after Michael, “Jay Reeves, AP, October 21, 2018.

The Boston Globe (10/19, Finucane) reported a study published in JAMA Network Open found that people with the ApoE4 gene and who also have chronic inflammation have a higher risk of contracting Alzheimer’s disease. The researchers “used data from the Framingham Heart Study, which includes more than 3,000 human subjects.”

Related Links:

— “BU researchers examine role of inflammation in Alzheimer’s disease, “Martin Finucane, The Boston Globe, October 19, 2018.