A nasal spray containing a ketamine derivative appears to beat one of the standard drugs used for people with difficult-to-treat depression, a new clinical trial has found. The trial, of nearly 700 people with treatment-resistant depression, found that esketamine nasal spray was more effective at sending patients into remission than a standard oral drug called quetiapine (Seroquel). After eight weeks, 27% of esketamine patients were in remission, versus 18% of those given quetiapine. By week 32, half of esketamine patients were faring that well, compared with one-third of those on quetiapine. Experts said the findings, published in the Oct. 5 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, strengthen the case that esketamine is a good option for people with treatment-resistant depression. The condition, which plagues up to 30% of people with depression, is generally diagnosed when a person’s symptoms have failed to yield to at least two standard antidepressants. It’s a situation that places people at increased risk of hospitalization and suicide. There are a few medications approved in the United States as an “augmentation” therapy for treatment-resistant depression — meaning they are used along with a standard antidepressant. Quetiapine is one of them, and so is esketamine nasal spray, which has been available since 2019 under the brand-name Spravato. That approval was based on research testing esketamine against a placebo nasal spray. The…  read on >  read on >

In the United States, “conversion therapy” for LGBTQ people has been widely condemned by major medical associations. Not only that, nearly half of the country has now banned the practice for minors. But a new review of 16 investigations across six nations suggests conversion therapy is hardly a thing of the past. On average, nearly one of every 10 LGBTQ individuals around the world say they have been exposed to the highly problematic practice at some point in their lives, researchers found. Such practices “include organized attempts to deter someone from adopting or expressing an LGBTQ identity or a gender identity that differs from [their] sex assigned at birth,” explained study lead author Travis Salway. He is an assistant professor with the Simon Fraser University Centre for Gender and Sexual Health Equity, in Canada. But “the vast majority of research on conversion practices to date demonstrates limited to no effectiveness, and substantial risk of harm, including depression, anxiety and, in some cases, suicide,” Salway added. Nevertheless, after reviewing studies conducted in the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, Colombia and South Korea, Salway’s team found “conversion practices remain prevalent, with approximately 8% of LGBTQ people having been exposed in their lifetime.” That figure did vary considerably from country to country, rising to 13% in the United States, while falling to 7% across Canada. On…  read on >  read on >

More than 80% of eligible Americans did not get a COVID-19 booster shot last fall. Now, a new study reveals the reasons for the hesitation. Nearly 40% of survey participants said a prior COVID-19 infection factored into their decision to not get the booster. Another 31.5% were worried about side effects. And an additional 28% didn’t think a booster would provide extra protection, while 23% said it wouldn’t protect from the new coronavirus. “Our results indicate that we have a lot more work to do in terms of educating the public and health care providers about the importance of staying up to date on COVID-19 boosters,” said first study author Elizabeth Jacobs. She is a professor of epidemiology at the Zuckerman College of Public Health at the University of Arizona Health Sciences, in Tucson. This research was done through Arizona CoVHORT, which began in May 2020 to track the effect of COVID infection on Arizonans. Researchers hope the results, published in the Oct. 6 issue of the journal Vaccine, will help encourage interventions to get more people vaccinated. A variety of strategies may be needed to improve vaccination rates, as age, ethnicity and education affected reasons for hesitation, according to the study. “Our results indicate that many people don’t know that a booster provides additional protection even if they have already been infected or that…  read on >  read on >

New research has discovered 12 gene variants that may be tied to an increased risk of attempting suicide. These genes also may have links with physical and mental health woes, including chronic pain, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), lung conditions and heart disease. The researchers hope this finding, published online Oct. 1 in the American Journal of Psychiatry, will lead to better understanding of the biological causes of suicide. “Many people who die from suicide have significant health conditions associated with that risk,” said study corresponding author Anna Docherty, an associate professor of psychiatry at the Huntsman Mental Health Institute (HMHI) at the University of Utah. “If we can use genetic information to characterize the health risks of those who attempt suicide, we can better identify those patients who need contact with the mental health care system.” For the study, the investigators analyzed data from 22 different populations, including people of diverse ethnic backgrounds. What they found wasn’t one single gene influencing risk, but the cumulative effect of different genes. “In psychiatry, we have many tiny genetic effects, but when we account for all of them together, we start to see a real genetic risk signal,” Docherty explained in a university news release. To assess that risk, the team broke down data from the Million Veteran Program and the International Suicide Genetics Consortium. That data included nearly…  read on >  read on >

In yet another reminder of the psychic toll the pandemic has taken on young people, new research shows spending on mental health services for U.S. children and adolescents has risen sharply since 2020. It climbed 26% for youths aged 19 and younger between March 2020 and August 2022, the RAND Corp. study found. Among a large group whose families had employer-provided insurance, use of mental health services increased by 22%. Use of telehealth for young patients skyrocketed more than 30-fold in the early days of the pandemic and remained 23 times higher than normal by August 2022. In-person care stood at 75% of pre-pandemic levels by that time. “Our findings suggest that telehealth care for mental health filled a critical need for pediatric patients after the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic and continues to support a substantial proportion of pediatric mental health care,” said lead author Mariah Kalmin, a policy researcher at RAND, a nonprofit research organization in Santa Monica, Calif. For the study, the researchers examined claims from health benefit manager Castlight Health. The study involved 1.9 million children and teens with commercial insurance from January 2019 through August 2022. Castlight manages insurance plans for about 200 employers in all 50 U.S. states. The researchers looked for common pediatric mental health diagnoses, including anxiety disorders, adjustment disorder, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), major depressive disorder and…  read on >  read on >

Loneliness can leave many feeling desolate, but new research now suggests it may also leave people vulnerable to Parkinson’s disease. Among more than 490,000 people listed in the UK Biobank who were followed for up to 15 years, loneliness appeared to increase the chances of a Parkinson’s diagnosis by 37%. “The association between loneliness and incident Parkinson’s disease was not due to shared genetic, clinical or behavioral risk factors,” said senior researcher Angelina Sutin, a professor in the department of behavioral sciences and social medicine at Florida State University’s College of Medicine in Tallahassee. Although this study can’t prove that loneliness causes Parkinson’s disease, there appears to be a connection, Sutin said. “We show that there is an association between loneliness and the development of Parkinson’s disease, not that loneliness causes Parkinson’s disease,” she stressed. Sutin said that loneliness has been identified as a significant public health concern by the U.S. Surgeon General, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine, and the World Health Organization. “This study adds to the body of evidence for the poor outcomes associated with loneliness, particularly neurodegenerative diseases,” she said. “Loneliness has been associated with Alzheimer’s disease and other types of dementia. The present research indicates that it is a risk factor for Parkinson’s disease as well.” Multiple factors may be linked to why loneliness may raise the risk…  read on >  read on >

TUESDAY, Oct. 3, 2023 (HealthDay News) – Exposure to ubiquitous chemicals known as PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, may delay puberty in girls, new research indicates. The study is the first to consider the role hormones play in the delay, according to researchers from the University of Cincinnati. Delayed puberty can lead to negative long-term health outcomes for girls, such as a higher incidence of breast cancer, kidney disease and thyroid disease, said corresponding author Susan Pinney, a professor of environmental and public health sciences at the university’s College of Medicine. “Puberty is a window of susceptibility,” Pinney said in a university news release. “Environmental exposures during puberty, not just to PFAS, but anything, have more of a potential for a long-term health effect. What these have done is extended the window of susceptibility, and it makes them more vulnerable for a longer period of time.” Researchers examined data from more than 800 girls from the Greater Cincinnati and San Francisco Bay areas who were 6 to 8 years old when they joined the study. The girls were examined every six to 12 months to see when they experienced the first signs of breast development and pubic hair. About 85% of the girls in the two geographic groups had measurable levels of PFAS. Researchers also discovered evidence of decreased hormones that were consistent with…  read on >  read on >