Here are what the editors at HealthDay consider to be the most important developments in Psychiatry for April 2013. This roundup includes the latest research news from journal articles, as well as the FDA approvals and regulatory changes that are the most likely to affect clinical practice.
Renewed Efforts From AAFP to Repeal OTC Provision in ACA
TUESDAY, April 30 (HealthDay News) -- Members of the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) and other medical associations are urging further consideration of Section 9003 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) that requires holders of tax-preferred health care accounts to obtain a physician's prescription to use funds from those accounts to pay for over-the-counter (OTC) medications. The concerns have been laid out in a letter to the chair and the ranking member of the House Committee on Ways and Means.
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No Evidence of Lyme Disease in Children With Autism
TUESDAY, April 30 (HealthDay News) -- A small study of 120 children appears to show that children with autism have no serological evidence of Lyme disease, according to a research letter published in the May 1 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, a theme issue on child health.
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Multicenter Study Links Peri-Op SSRI Use to Adverse Outcomes
TUESDAY, April 30 (HealthDay News) -- Perioperative use of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) is associated with adverse outcomes, including in-hospital mortality, bleeding, and 30-day readmission, according to a multicenter study published online April 29 in JAMA Internal Medicine.
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Hawaii Is Least Stressed State With Highest Enjoyment Levels
MONDAY, April 29 (HealthDay News) -- Hawaii remains the least stressed state, and also reports the highest level of enjoyment, according to a report from Gallup-Healthways.
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Mediterranean Diet Adherence Cuts Cognitive Impairment
MONDAY, April 29 (HealthDay News) -- Greater adherence to a Mediterranean diet (MeD) is associated with a lower likelihood of incident cognitive impairment (ICI), especially among those without diabetes, according to a study published in the April 30 issue of Neurology.
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Explicit Sex Materials Modestly Influence Sexual Behaviors
MONDAY, April 29 (HealthDay News) -- Consumption of sexually explicit material (SEM) has a modest, but significant, effect on sexual behaviors, according to a study published online April 26 in the The Journal of Sexual Medicine.
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FDA Announces New Network to Focus Exclusively on Patients
MONDAY, April 29 (HealthDay News) -- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has announced the launch of a new interactive tool for educating patients, their advocates, and consumers about the processes involved in medication development.
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Medical Interns Spending Less Time With Patients
FRIDAY, April 26 (HealthDay News) -- Medical interns are spending less time with patients and more time at a computer since new rules limiting total work hours were instituted in 2011, according to a study published online April 18 in the Journal of General Internal Medicine.
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Saturday Marks Sixth Annual Rx Drug Take-Back Day
FRIDAY, April 26 (HealthDay News) -- United States residents across the nation will have an opportunity to safely and anonymously unload expired, unwanted prescription medications on Saturday, April 27, during the sixth annual National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day.
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Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy Improves PTSD
FRIDAY, April 26 (HealthDay News) -- Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) can provide significant and clinically meaningful improvement in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, according to a pilot study published online April 17 in Depression and Anxiety.
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Insurance Prior Authorization Doesn't Up Psych ER Stay
THURSDAY, April 25 (HealthDay News) -- For psychiatric patients, the requirement to obtain authorization from insurance companies prior to admission does not seem to add to the total time spent in emergency departments, according to a study published in the May issue of the Annals of Emergency Medicine.
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Physicians Less Empathetic in Talking to Heavy Patients
THURSDAY, April 25 (HealthDay News) -- Primary care physicians (PCPs) are less likely to bond with overweight and obese patients, according to research published online March 20 in Obesity.
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Diagnostic Errors Are the Leading Type of Malpractice Claim
WEDNESDAY, April 24 (HealthDay News) -- In the past 25 years, diagnostic errors have been the leading type of malpractice claim and account for the highest proportion of total payments, according to a study published online April 22 in BMJ Quality & Safety.
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Parental Permissiveness Linked to Rx Drug Abuse, Misuse
TUESDAY, April 23 (HealthDay News) -- Nearly one-quarter of teenagers misuse or abuse a prescription drug at least once in their lifetime, with perceived parental permissiveness linked to misuse and abuse of prescription drugs as well as use of alcohol and marijuana, according to a report published online April 23 by The Partnership at Drugfree.org.
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Brain Stimulation Reduces Smoking Cravings
TUESDAY, April 23 (HealthDay News) -- High-frequency brain stimulation can temporarily reduce smoking cravings, according to a study published in the April 15 issue of Biological Psychiatry.
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USPSTF: Primary Care Screening Can Help ID Suicide Risk
MONDAY, April 22 (HealthDay News) -- The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force finds that primary care screening tools could probably identify adults at increased risk of suicide, although they have limited efficacy in adolescents. This Recommendation Statement is based on an evidence review published in the April 23 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine.
Draft Recommendation Statement
Comment on Recommendations
Background Review
Docs' Role in Gauging Fitness for Concealed Weapons Queried
MONDAY, April 22 (HealthDay News) -- Given the ethical, legal, and policy issues relating to the role of physicians in assessing competency for concealed-weapons permits, standards should be issued, according to a perspective piece published online April 17 in the New England Journal of Medicine.
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Genetics Linked to Abnormal Alzheimer's Markers
FRIDAY, April 19 (HealthDay News) -- Individuals with a family history of late-onset Alzheimer's disease who are cognitively normal or mildly impaired have a higher prevalence of abnormal cerebral markers, according to a study published online April 17 in PLOS ONE.
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Patient-Centered Decision Making Ups Health Outcomes
FRIDAY, April 19 (HealthDay News) -- Patient-centered decision making (PCDM) is associated with improved health care outcomes, according to a study published in the April 16 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine.
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Guidelines Issued Relating to Online Medical Professionalism
THURSDAY, April 18 (HealthDay News) -- Physicians should be aware of the benefits on online media and should recognize the implications for patient confidentiality and public perception, according to a position paper published in the April 16 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine.
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Family-Centered Teaching Rounds Good for Patients, Students
THURSDAY, April 18 (HealthDay News) -- Teaching and conducting rounds in the presence of patients and their families can be beneficial for patients and learners, according to research published online April 15 in Pediatrics.
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Essay Questions Conventional Etiology of Obesity
THURSDAY, April 18 (HealthDay News) -- To progress in the fight against obesity it is necessary to accept that there may be alternative hypotheses underlying its etiology and be prepared to invest the necessary time and resources to understand the underlying causes, according to an essay published online April 16 in BMJ.
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Vascular Markers Linked to Cognitive Decline in Diabetes
THURSDAY, April 18 (HealthDay News) -- Stroke and subclinical markers of macrovascular disease are associated with cognitive decline in older adults with type 2 diabetes, according to a study published online April 11 in Diabetes Care.
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Happiness Influenced by One's Own, Others' Sexual Activity
THURSDAY, April 18 (HealthDay News) -- Happiness is positively associated with an individual's sexual frequency and negatively associated with the sexual frequency of others, according to a study published in the February issue of Social Indicators Research.
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Community Benefit Spending Varies for Tax-Exempt Hospitals
WEDNESDAY, April 17 (HealthDay News) -- There is considerable variation in the level of community benefit expenditure by tax-exempt hospitals, according to a study published in the April 18 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
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Women's Hostile Attributions Up Odds of Child Maltreatment
WEDNESDAY, April 17 (HealthDay News) -- Pregnant women's hostile attributions about infants correlate with an increased risk of early child maltreatment and harsh parenting, according to a study published online April 15 in JAMA Pediatrics.
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Presenting Fee Data to Docs Cuts Number of Tests Ordered
WEDNESDAY, April 17 (HealthDay News) -- Presenting fee data to providers at the time of laboratory test orders is associated with a small reduction in the number of tests ordered, according to a study published online April 15 in JAMA Internal Medicine.
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Aerobic Exercise Reduces Brain Damage From Alcohol
WEDNESDAY, April 17 (HealthDay News) -- Heavy alcohol consumption is associated with greater white matter damage in people who do not regularly do aerobic exercise, according to a study published online April 2 in Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research.
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Exercise Benefits Physical Functioning in Alzheimer's
TUESDAY, April 16 (HealthDay News) -- For patients with Alzheimer's disease, a year-long exercise program is associated with reduced deterioration in physical functioning, according to a study published online April 15 in JAMA Internal Medicine.
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Family Doc Counseling Fails to Lift QoL for Abused Women
TUESDAY, April 16 (HealthDay News) -- For women identified as positive for fear of partner, counseling from trained family doctors is not associated with improved quality of life, but may reduce depression, according to a study published online April 16 in The Lancet.
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Similar Outcomes for Robotic, Laparoscopic Prostatectomy
TUESDAY, April 16 (HealthDay News) -- For men undergoing routine surgical treatment for localized cancer of the prostate, robot-assisted radical prostatectomy (RALP) does not result in better functional outcomes compared to laparoscopic radical prostatectomy (LRP), according to a study published in the April issue of Urology.
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FDA Warns Consumers of Dangers of the Stimulant DMAA
MONDAY, April 15 (HealthDay News) -- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is attempting to halt distribution of dietary supplements that contain the stimulant dimethylamylamine (DMAA), following reports of illness and death associated with these supplements.
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Speech Details Practices to Improve U.S. Health Systems
THURSDAY, April 11 (HealthDay News) -- There are specific steps health care providers and policymakers should take to create high-quality, patient-centered care at lower costs, according to remarks made in an April 9 speech to the National Press Club.
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Mental Health Seaches on Web Follow a Seasonal Pattern
THURSDAY, April 11 (HealthDay News) -- Seasonal patterns of information searches on all major mental illness and/or problems mirror those patterns for seasonal affective disorder, according to research published in the May issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.
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Fish Oil Has No Effect on Depression in Pregnancy
THURSDAY, April 11 (HealthDay News) -- Fish oil supplements do not prevent depression in late pregnancy and postpartum in women at risk of depression, according to a study in the April issue of the American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology.
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Teens With Gynecomastia Have Lower Psychosocial Well-Being
WEDNESDAY, April 10 (HealthDay News) -- Adolescent males with gynecomastia have lower psychosocial well-being than their unaffected peers, according to a study published in the April issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery.
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SNP Spots Late Alzheimer's Risk in African-Americans
TUESDAY, April 9 (HealthDay News) -- A novel variant in the ATP-Binding Cassette Transporter (ABCA7) has been identified, which is associated with late-onset Alzheimer's disease in African-Americans, according to a study published April 10 in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
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Former College Athletes Don't Have Increased Depression Risk
MONDAY, April 8 (HealthDay News) -- Former college athletes seem not to have an increased risk for depression, according to a study published online March 25 in Sports Health: A Multidisciplinary Approach.
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Annual Cost of Dementia About $200 Billion in U.S.
WEDNESDAY, April 3 (HealthDay News) -- In 2010, about 15 percent of elderly individuals in the United States had dementia, with the total monetary cost about $200 billion, according to a study published in the April 4 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
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Most Partners of U.S. Docs Satisfied in Their Relationships
MONDAY, April 1 (HealthDay News) -- Most spouses/partners of U.S. physicians report being satisfied with their relationships, with satisfaction linked to time spent together each day, according to research published in the March issue of the Mayo Clinic Proceedings.
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