Reuters (5/10, Seaman) reports that the risk for having a motor vehicle accident is “significantly reduced” for people with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (AD/HD) “when they are taking” AD/HD “medication, a 10-year study” revealed. Included in the study were some “2,319,450 people over age 18 with” a diagnosis of AD/HD. Of that group, “about 1.9 million of them received at least one prescription to treat” the disorder during the course of the study. The findings were published online May 10 in JAMA Psychiatry.

According to MedPage Today (5/10, Bachert), the authors of an invited commentary “noted the findings confirm and extend existing experimental studies, and have impressive implications for the use of” medication for AD/HD. Also covering the study are Psychiatric News (5/10), the Washington Times (5/10, Kelly) and Healio (5/10, Oldt).

Related Links:

— “ADHD treatment tied to lower car crash risk,” Andrew M. Seaman, Reuters, May 10, 2017.

The Boston Globe (5/9, Kowalczyk) reports that investigators “posing as the parent of a depressed 12-year-old called hundreds of child psychiatrists and pediatricians looking for appointments, and discovered what many actual parents know through bitter experience: Most of the time the calls were fruitless.” After phoning some 913 physicians listed as in network “by Blue Cross Blue Shield organizations in Boston, Chapel Hill, Houston, Minneapolis, and Seattle,” researchers discovered that “after two attempts, they were able to get an appointment with a pediatrician 40 percent of the time and with a psychiatrist a meager 17 percent.” The findings were published online May 5 in the International Journal of Health Services.

Related Links:

— “Search for mental health care for children is often fruitless,” Liz Kowalczyk, Boston Globe, May 2, 2017.

The Los Angeles Times (5/8, Karlamangla) reports some physicians are referring to their patients to peer support groups to help them cope with chronic diseases that can affect their lifestyles. The article highlights one such group in Los Angeles for patients with diabetes, and points out that the Department of Health and Human Services’ Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality recommends peer groups as a way to address concerns that might not be given adequate attention during a short visit with a physician.

Related Links:

— “Doctors turn to the power of peer groups to help diabetics,” Soumya Karlamangla, Los Angeles Times, May 8, 2017.

Healio (5/5, Polhamus) reported that President Trump’s proposed 2018 budget “would all but eliminate funding for the Office of National Drug Control Policy [ONDCP], the agency spearheading the fight against the national opioid epidemic, according to a report from Politico.” As it stands now, “the White House’s budget proposal allots $24 million for fiscal 2018, a 95% decrease from the $388 million in federal funds the office received in 2017.”

Related Links:

— “White House budget proposal slashes funding for drug control office by 95%,” Andy Polhamus, Healio, May 5, 2017.

HealthDay (5/8, Miller) reports that research suggests “a child bullied in fifth grade is more likely to show signs of depression in seventh grade, and abuse substances like alcohol, marijuana or tobacco in 10th grade.” Investigators came to this conclusion after studying approximately 4,000 children. The findings were published in Pediatrics.

Related Links:

— “Bullied in 5th Grade, Prone to Drug Abuse by High School,” Gia Miller, HealthDay, May 8, 2017.