A research letter indicating that drug overdose deaths are still on the rise in the US garnered moderate coverage, mostly online, as well as on one of last night’s national news broadcasts. Many articles point to the continued role opioids have had in this trend.

ABC World News (2/19, story 6, 0:30, Sawyer) reported, “Today, we learned that for the 11th straight year, the number of deaths due to drug overdoses went up.”

The Los Angeles Times (2/20, Serna) “Booster Shots” blog reports, “According to a research letter…from the National Center for Health Statistics” published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, “38,329 people died of drug overdoses in the United States in 2010, an uptick from the previous year and the latest sign of a deadly trend involving prescription painkillers.” About three-quarters “of all prescription drug deaths were accidental, statistics show.” Just “17% of overdoses were suicides.”

The AP (2/20, Tanner, Stobbe) reports that according to Dr. Thomas Frieden, head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “The big picture is that this is a big problem that has gotten much worse quickly.” As was the case “in previous recent years, opioid drugs – which include OxyContin [oxycodone] and Vicodin [acetaminophen and hydrocodone] – were the biggest problem, contributing to 3 out of 4 medication overdose deaths.” The AP adds, “Frieden said many doctors and patients don’t realize how addictive these drugs can be, and that they’re too often prescribed for pain that can be managed with less risky drugs.”

In a very brief article, the New York Times (2/20, Tavernise, Subscription Publication) reports, “Prescription drugs were involved in more than half of all overdoses, with 22,134 deaths from them.”

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (2/20, Fauber) reports, “In addition to the overdose deaths, there were 425,000 emergency department visits for misuse or abuse of opioids, including overdoses, up from 166,338 in 2004, said Chris Jones, a CDC researcher and lead author of the paper.” The fatalities “and emergency room visits follow a fourfold increase in opioid sales since 1999, Jones noted.”

MedPage Today (2/20, Fiore) reports, “Antidepressants were involved in 13.4% of prescription opioid-related deaths, followed by anti-epileptic and anti-parkinsonism drugs at 6.8%, and antipsychotics and neuroleptics at 4.7%.” According to the researchers, the report “confirms the predominant role opioid analgesics play in pharmaceutical overdose deaths, either alone or in combination with other drugs,” but also “highlights the frequent involvement of drugs typically prescribed for mental health conditions, such as benzodiazepines, antidepressants, and antipsychotics in overdose deaths.”

Medscape (2/20) reports that the researchers “also note that individuals with mental illness ‘are at increased risk for heavy therapeutic use, nonmedical use, and overdose of opioids.'”

Related Links:

— “Fatal drug overdoses in U.S. increase for 11th consecutive year,”Joseph Serna, Los Angeles Times, February 19, 2013.

Medwire (2/20) reports, “Perinatal mood episodes are highly prevalent in women with bipolar disorder [BD] and recurrent major depression,” according to a 1,785-woman study published in the February issue of JAMA Psychiatry. “Of the [980] women with bipolar I disorder, the lifetime prevalence of a mood episode in the perinatal period was 69.5%. Similarly, 69.0% of [232] women with bipolar II disorder and 67.4% of [573] women with recurrent major depression were affected by a mood episode during pregnancy or the postpartum period.”

Related Links:

— “Perinatal episodes prevalent in women with mood disorders,”medwireNews Reporters, February 20, 2013.

USA Today (2/20, Kennedy) reports, “Medicare consumers with bipolar disorder or schizophrenia are hospitalized less often if they maintain access to their medications when they hit the coverage gap for prescription drugs, according to a study” published Feb. 19 in the American Journal of Managed Care. The study of “87,747 patients with bipolar disorder and 92,523 with schizophrenia” revealed that “hospitalization rates…were highest for patients with no gap coverage.” The study authors argued that the US “would save money by closing the prescription drug ‘doughnut hole’ and by having more patients use generic instead of brand-name” medications.

Related Links:

— “Report: Mental health drugs vital for Medicare patients, “Kelly Kennedy, USA Today, February 19, 2013.

HealthDay (2/21, Dallas) reports, “People with disabilities are at greater risk of being the victims of violence, particularly if they have a mental illness-related disability, according to a new study” published Feb. 20 in PLoS One. For the study, researchers “examined information compiled in the 2009-2010 British Crime Survey to estimate the likelihood that a noninstitutionalized person with physical or mental disabilities would suffer physical, sexual, domestic or nondomestic violence.” They found that “the odds of being a victim of violence in the past year were three times higher for those with a mental-illness-related disability and twice as high for those with a physical disability.”

Related Links:

— “People With Disabilities More Likely to Become Victims of Violence, “Mary Elizabeth Dallas, Healthday, February 20, 2013.

The New York Times (2/20, Saint Louis) “Well” blog reports, “Victims of bullying at school, and bullies themselves, are more likely to experience psychiatric problems in childhood, studies have shown. Now,” according to a study published online Feb. 20 in JAMA Psychiatry, “researchers have found that elevated risk of psychiatric trouble extends into adulthood, sometimes even a decade after the intimidation has ended.”

The Huffington Post (2/20, Pappas) carries a LiveScience piece, which reports that researchers “used data from a study begun 20 years ago, which queried 1,420 children and their parents about general mental health beginning at age 9, 11 or 13.” The youngsters “were assessed annually until age 16, and then they came back for follow-ups at ages 19, 21 and 25. Before age 16, participants were asked whether they had been bullied or bullied others, how frequently, and where any bullying occurred, among other questions.”

HealthDay (2/21, Reinberg) reports that the investigators “found that both those who had been bullied as kids and those who had been both bullies and bullied had a higher risk for psychological problems than those who weren’t bullied. Those problems included depressive disorders, anxiety disorders, generalized anxiety, panic disorder and agoraphobia.” What’s more, “those who were both bullies and victims of bullying had, in addition to being at risk for anxiety and depression, the highest levels of suicidal thoughts.”

Medscape (2/21, Cassels) reports that “bullies were at risk for antisocial personality disorder only (OR, 4.1; 95% CI, 1.1 – 15.8; P < .04)." MedPage Today (2/21, Phend) points out that "the study was supported by the National Institute of Mental Health, the National Institute on Drug Abuse," among others. Also covering the story is the Daily Mail (UK) (2/21). Related Links:

— “Childhood Bullying Can Leave Lifelong Scars, “Steven Reinberg, HealthDay, February 20, 2013.

Several national outlets reported that HHS released final rules on Wednesday for the ACA’s essential health benefits provision. Most note that the regulations, while integral to the law, have changed little since first proposed last November.

The New York Times (2/21, A16, Pear, Subscription Publication) reports, “The Obama administration issued a final rule on Wednesday defining ‘essential health benefits’ that must be offered by most health insurance plans next year, and it said that 32 million people would gain access to coverage of mental health care as a result.” The rule “requires insurers to cover treatment of mental illnesses, behavioral disorders, drug addiction and alcohol abuse, and other conditions.” HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius “said that in addition to the millions who would gain access to mental health care, 30 million people who already have some mental health coverage will see improvements in benefits.”

USA Today (2/21, Kennedy) reports, “The Department of Health and Human Services released its long-awaited final rule on essential health benefits today, allowing insurers and states to move forward on both the federal and state health exchanges.” In a report accompanying the report, HHS wrote, “Americans accessing coverage through non-grandfathered plans in the individual and small group markets will now be able to count on mental health and substance use disorder coverage that is comparable to their general medical and surgical coverage.”

The Wall Street Journal (2/21, A2, Dooren, Subscription Publication) reports that the Obama Administration finalized rules Wednesday which mandate that health insurance plans cover mental-health and substance-abuse treatments, among other categories, starting next year under the Affordable Care Act. The rules fall under the provision of the ACA which requires essential health benefits in 10 categories of care, like prescription medications and physical rehabilitation. Specifics requirements for insurers will be set by the states.

Reuters (2/21, Morgan) reports that in the rule, HHS said, “The states continue to maintain their traditional role in defining the scope of insurance benefits and may exercise that authority by selecting a plan that reflects the benefit priorities of that state.”

The Hill (2/21, Goad) “Regwatch” blog reports that following the rule release, HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said in a statement, “People all across the country will soon find it easier to compare and enroll in health plans with better coverage, greater quality and new benefits.”

The Washington Post (2/21, Kliff) “Wonkblog” notes that “the final regulation looks similar to a draft published in November. It still allows states to pick between a handful of benchmark plans, so long as they cover a core set of physical and mental health benefits.”

The NPR (2/21, Appleby) “Shots” blog reports further, “Essential benefit requirements apply mainly to individual and small group plans. The requirements also apply to benefits provided to those newly eligible for Medicaid coverage.”

Modern Healthcare (2/21, Zigmond, Subscription Publication) reports, “The final rule maps out standards for the core set of benefits that health insurance issuers must cover in the individual and small group markets-both inside and outside of the health insurance exchanges-for 2014 and 2015.” And, NBC News (2/21, Fox) reports, “The final rules harden up draft rules published last November, after taking into account thousands of comments.” The New York Business Journal (2/21, Hoover) and MedPage Today (2/21, Pittman) also cover the story.

Related Links:

— “New Federal Rule Requires Insurers to Offer Mental Health Coverage,”Robert Pear, The new York Times, February 20, 2013.

The Baltimore Sun (2/19, Rector) reports, “A small but growing number of hospitals in Maryland have joined together to track and share information about the availability of psychiatric beds at participating institutions. The online registry is aimed at speeding patients out of overcrowded emergency rooms and into facilities where they can get the help they need.” The Sun adds, “The new tool, which went online in November, follows years of frustration among health [professionals] and patients with a system they say is woefully inadequate.”

Related Links:

— “Hospitals team to find beds for psychiatric patients, “Kevin Rector, The Baltimore Sun, February 18, 2013.

USA Today (2/18, Healy) reported, “In one of the largest studies yet to examine how modifying television content affects the development of young children ages 3 to 5, researchers report that six months after families reduced their kids’ exposure to aggressive and violence-filled programming and increased exposure to enriching and educational programming – even without changing the number of viewing hours – kids demonstrated statistically significant improved behavior compared to children whose media diet went unchanged.” These “improvements – declines in aggression and being difficult and increases in healthy social behaviors such as empathy, helpfulness and concern for others – persisted at 12 months, says the study involving 565 families in…Pediatrics.”

The New York Times (2/18, A10, Louis, Subscription Publication) reported, “Low-income boys showed the most improvement, though the researchers could not say why. Total viewing time did not differ between the two groups.”

The Los Angeles Times (2/18, Morin) “Booster Shots” blog reports that, according to the researchers, “Although television is frequently implicated as a cause of many problems in children, our research indicates that it may also be part of the solution.”

The AP (2/19, Blankinship) reports that while “the results were modest and faded over time,” they “may hold promise for finding ways to help young children avoid aggressive, violent behavior, the study authors and other doctors said.”

The CNN (2/18) “The Chart” blog points out that currently, “the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that preschoolers and older children get only one to two hours of TV or screen time a day. But in reality, they’re really watching much more.”

The ABC News (2/18) “Medical Unit” blog reports on that study, as well as a separate study published in Pediatrics that found “young adults who spent more time in front of a TV during their childhood are significantly more likely to be arrested and exhibit aggressive behavior.” Investigators “followed more than 1,000 young people in New Zealand from birth to age 26 and monitored the amount of television they watched during the ages of 5 and 15.” The researchers found that “the more television children watched, the more likely they were to have a criminal conviction, a diagnosis of antisocial personality disorder and more aggressive personality traits.”

HealthDay (2/19, Dotinga) reports that while “the study doesn’t definitively prove that watching TV caused criminal activity or aggression…the researchers found that other factors (including poverty levels and IQ) didn’t play a role.” Also covering the first study wereTime (2/19, Rochman) “Family Matters” blog, Reuters (2/19, Pittman) and the CBS News (2/19, Jaslow) website.

Related Links:

— “Modifying kids’ TV habits may improve behavior, “Michelle Healy, USA Today, February 18, 2013.

Medwire (2/19, Davenport) reports, “Men with first-episode psychosis [FEP] have more severe symptoms than women and are less likely to achieve recovery,” according to a 578-patient study published online Feb. 8 in the journal European Psychiatry. Even though “women were significantly more likely to attempt suicide during follow up, men were significantly more likely to die, at 14% versus 1%, and more likely to commit suicide, at 2.0% versus 0.4%,” the study revealed. “Conversely, women were more likely than men to meet the researchers’ criteria for recovery, with the difference being significant at two and five years of follow-up.”

Related Links:

— “First-episode psychosis hits men hard, “Liam Davenport, Medwire News, February 19, 2013.

MedPage Today (2/18, Walsh) reported, “Whether soldiers in combat develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) depends on their perception and attention to threat, the intensity of combat they are exposed to, and genetic susceptibility,” according to a study published online Feb. 13 in JAMA Psychiatry. The study, which included 1,085 Israeli soldiers followed for two years, revealed “a significant interaction…between attention to threat and degree of combat exposure (β = −0.73, 95% CI −0.45 to −0.08, P<0.004)." In addition, "a three-way interaction was observed between pre-deployment threat bias, combat exposure, and a polymorphism in the serotonin transporter gene (β = 0.62, 95% CI 0.02 to 0.19, P<0.01)," the study found. The study was partially supported by the National Institute of Mental Health. Related Links:

— “Combat PTSD Tied to Intensity of Fight, “Nancy Walsh, Medpage Today, February 17, 2013.