As I did on my posts of November 30, 2011, October 2, 2012,September 17, 2013, June 3, 2014, February 24, 2015, and December 15, 2015, it’s time once again to look over the highlights
of the latest issue of one of my two favorite psychiatry journals, Duh! and No
Sh*t, Sherlock. We'll take a look at the
unsurprising findings published in the latest issue of the latter. My
comments are in bronze.
As I pointed out in those earlier posts, research dollars are very limited and therefore
precious. Why waste good money trying to study new, cutting edge or
controversial ideas that might turn out to be wrong, when we can study things
that that are already known to be true but have yet to be "proven"?
Such an approach increases the success rate of studies almost astronomically.
And studies with positive results are far more likely to be published than
those that come up negative.
This last few months has been such a treasure trove of studies of the obvious, my descriptions of the individual studies listed will be a little briefer than usual.
At the end of today's issue of No Sh*t Sherlock is a special section on some new shocking and counterintuitive findings about things we used to think were good for your mental health and well-being - but turned out not to be.
12/15/15. Adolescents
Who Abuse Prescription Pain Medicines May Be More Likely To Have Sex,
Participate In Risky Sexual Behaviors
HealthDay (12/15, Haelle) reports that adolescents who abuse
prescription pain medications may be “more likely to have sex or to participate
in risky sexual behaviors,” a study published online Dec. 14 in Pediatrics
suggests.
Impulsive, self
destructive people were, I guess, previously thought to be highly selective in
which impulses to indulge.
12/15/15. Study Shows
Reduced Patient Satisfaction When Computers Are Used Excessively In Exam Rooms
On the front of its
Personal Journal section, the Wall Street Journal (12/15, D1,
Reddy, Subscription Publication) reports on a study published the previous month in JAMA Internal Medicine, which
found that patients whose doctors spent a lot of time looking at a computer
screen during examinations rated their care lower.
And here we thought
that patients just hate doctors who pay close attention and listen to them carefully.
12/23/15. College
Students Who Smoke Marijuana Appear More Likely Than Their Peers To Skip
Classes
HealthDay (12/23, Norton) reports, “College students who smoke
marijuana appear more likely than their peers to skip classes – which
eventually leads to poorer grades and later graduation,” a study published in the September issue of the journal Psychology
of Addictive Behaviors suggests.
This finding is just so difficult to explain.
1/6/16. Many Single Mothers with Minor Children are Sleep-deprived, CDC finds
The Los Angeles Times (1/6, Kaplan) reports
in Science Now that a data brief from the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention’s National Center for Health Statistics reveals that
“44% of single moms living with children under the age of 18 fall short of
recommendations to get at least seven hours of shut-eye each night.” Thirty-eight
percent of single fathers who live with their children “sleep less than seven
hours per night,” the report found.
I just don't understand why these parents can't make their days
last more than the usual 24 hours.
1/22/16. Prevention Programs for Youth Most Effective When
At-Risk Families Are Clinically Stable
Impulsive, self destructive people were, I guess, previously thought to be highly selective in which impulses to indulge.
And here we thought that patients just hate doctors who pay close attention and listen to them carefully.
This finding is just so difficult to explain.
I just don't understand why these parents can't make their days last more than the usual 24 hours.
Programs that teach
stress management and cognitive-restructuring skills may help to prevent the
onset of depression in teens at high risk for depression, but how effective
they are appears to depend largely on the mental health of youth and their
parents when the intervention begins, according to a study published online this week in the Journal
of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.
At last the long-sought proof that the more severe a disorder, the worse the prognosis tends to be.
At last the long-sought proof that the more severe a disorder, the worse the prognosis tends to be.
3/2/16. Study
Suggests Factors Predictive of Violent Behavior in People With Mental Illness
Results from a meta-analysis in Psychiatric
Services in Advance shows that three factors may be associated with an
increased risk for adults with mental illnesses to commit community violence in
the near future. They are alcohol use, exhibiting violent behaviors, and being
a victim of violence within the past six months.
Booze fuels violence? Past behavior a predictor of future behavior? Who'd'a thunk??
Booze fuels violence? Past behavior a predictor of future behavior? Who'd'a thunk??
3/16/16. Disruptive Patients may Get Worse Care from Physicians
HealthDay (3/15, Dotinga) reports,
“‘Disruptive’ patients may get worse care from physicians,” studies suggest.
Can't be. Doctors have been trained to be completely unaffected by annoying people. (Well, psychoanalysts anyway).
Can't be. Doctors have been trained to be completely unaffected by annoying people. (Well, psychoanalysts anyway).
4/21/16. Eating
Disorders May Be More Prevalent At Schools With A Greater Proportion Of Female
Students
HealthDay (4/20, Preidt) reports, “Eating disorders may be more
prevalent at schools where a greater portion of the student body is female,”
research suggests.
I just never noticed the higher prevalence of women among patients with anorexia and bulemia.
I just never noticed the higher prevalence of women among patients with anorexia and bulemia.
5/25/16. Severely
Obese Children Picked On, Bullied More Than Normal-Weight Kids
HealthDay (5/25, Reinberg) reports, “As early as first grade,
severely obese children are getting teased, picked on and bullied more than
normal-weight kids,” research published online May 25 in Child Development
indicates. Researchers arrived at this conclusion after gathering “data on
nearly 1,200 first graders from 29 rural schools in Oklahoma.”
Did these researchers ever go to grade school?
Did these researchers ever go to grade school?
5/27/16. Depressed Patients Who
Attempt Suicide Four Or More Times May Have Higher Risk Of Eventually Dying By
Suicide, Research Suggests
Medscape (5/26, Brooks) reports, “Depressed patients who attempt
suicide four or more times have a higher risk of eventually dying by suicide
compared with their depressed peers who have never attempted suicide or who
have done so fewer times,” research suggests.
The fifth time is the charm.
The fifth time is the charm.
6/2/16. Higher Out-of-pocket Costs Lead to Reduced Adherence
A literature review of 160 articles and abstracts identified a clear
relationship between cost sharing, adherence, and outcomes. Of the articles
that evaluated the relationship between changes in out-of-pocket costs and
adherence, 85% showed that increasing patient out-of-pocket medication costs
leads to reduced adherence.
Did these researcher ever hear of the law of supply and demand? Guess not.
Did these researcher ever hear of the law of supply and demand? Guess not.
6/16/16. Hospital Deaths more Costly and Involve More Tests and Procedures than Deaths at Home
On its website, NPR (6/15, Kodjak) reports people who die
in hospitals “undergo more intense tests and procedures than those who die
anywhere else” and that more is spent on people dying in hospitals compared to
people who die at home, according to an analysis by Arcadia Healthcare
Solutions.
I was wondering about that (not!)
I was wondering about that (not!)
7/1/16. Problem Of
Missed Medication May Increase With Age, Failing Memory
HealthDay (6/30, Preidt) reports that a study published in the Journal
of the American Geriatrics Society “suggests that the problem of missed”
medication “rises with age and failing memory, especially for men.” The
investigators found that other factors linked to “medication lapses” were
“memory deficits” and having “trouble with the tasks of everyday living.”
Gee, people with memory problems forget things.
Gee, people with memory problems forget things.
And now for the
special section that details how we have recently discovered that many things in the
environment that were once thought to be sources of tremendous joy and uplift
turn out to actually be downers that create various negative feeling states and are risk factors for depression and anxiety.
These include
childhood abuse and neglect, poverty, post-partum depression, traumatic
experiences, cancer, kids having parents with chronic severe migraine
headaches, having your livelihood threatened by a disciplinary action from a
licensing board, diabetic retinopathy, having a premature infant, and combat
experiences.
I bet you think I'm
making this up. Sorry, but you just can't make this stuff up.
3/1/16. Study finds
children who face adversity before age 5 struggle in school
Kaiser Health News (2/29, Gillespie) reports a study published in the journal Pediatrics
found that “adverse childhood experiences [ACEs] before age 5,” including
“neglect, abuse and dysfunctional home lives,” were associated “with poor
academic and behavioral performance in kindergarten.”
These researchers just don't understand that these kids just have ADHD.
These researchers just don't understand that these kids just have ADHD.
3/17/16.
Low-Income People Exposed To Rats In Urban Environment May Be More Likely To
Have Depressive Symptoms
According to the NBC News (3/16, Fox) website, a study conducted by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public
Health and published online Feb. 10 in the Journal of Community Psychology
reveals that “people living in Baltimore’s low-income neighborhoods who see
rats as a big problem are significantly more likely to have depressive symptoms
such as sadness and anxiety.”
3/21/16. Women Who Have
Had Postpartum Depression May Not Have More than Two Children, Study Indicates
HealthDay (3/18, Preidt) reported, “Women who’ve had postpartum
depression may not have more than two children,” the findings of a study published in the January issue of Evolution, Medicine and
Public Health suggest.
Depression was previously thought to be so much fun that everyone wanted to go through it as many times as possible.
Depression was previously thought to be so much fun that everyone wanted to go through it as many times as possible.
4/25/16. Exposure
To Traumatic Events May Be Associated With A Host Of Potential Negative
Behavioral And Physical Effects
Medscape (4/25, Melville) reports, “Exposure to one or more
potentially traumatic events in a lifetime is associated with a host of
potential negative behavioral and physical effects, ranging from mental illness
and depression to substance abuse, asthma, and” hypertension, the findings of a
new report from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
Administration’s Center for Behavioral Health Statistics and Quality indicate.
4/28/16. Cancer Diagnosis may be Associated with Increased Risk for Anxiety, depression
HealthDay (4/28, Preidt) reports that research published in JAMA Oncology
“details the psychological damage” a cancer diagnosis “often leaves in its wake
for patients.” Investigators “found much higher rates of anxiety, depression
and even drug and alcohol abuse for those who’ve been told ‘you have cancer,’
compared to healthier people.” Healio (4/28) reports that the study
indicated “the risk for mental disorders appeared stronger among patients whose
cancers had poorer prognoses.”
5/31/15. Childhood
Trauma May Increase Risk of Adolescent Drug Use, Study Shows
Children who experience
traumatic events prior to the age of 11 may be more likely to use marijuana,
cocaine, nonmedical prescription drugs, or other drugs as teens, according to a report online in the Journal of the
American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.
6/27/16. For Teens,
Living With Parents Who Have Chronic Migraine May Negatively Affect Activities
Of Daily Life, School Performance.
Medscape (6/24, Davenport) reported, “For adolescents, living with
parents who have chronic migraine has a negative effect on activities of daily
life and on school performance and is associated with increased rates of
anxiety,” research suggests.
Parental misery and pain were previously thought to have no effect on their children whatsoever.
Parental misery and pain were previously thought to have no effect on their children whatsoever.
7/15/16. Patient Complaints Against Physicians and the Ensuing Complaint Review Process Seriously Affect Physicians' Long-term Psychological Well-being
and can lead to their practicing defensive medicine, results of a large qualitative survey show. Led by Tom Bourne, MD, PhD, from the Department of Surgery and Cancer, Imperial College London, United Kingdom, the study is an analysis of responses to qualitative questions as part of a larger anonymous survey completed by almost 8000 physicians.
and can lead to their practicing defensive medicine, results of a large qualitative survey show. Led by Tom Bourne, MD, PhD, from the Department of Surgery and Cancer, Imperial College London, United Kingdom, the study is an analysis of responses to qualitative questions as part of a larger anonymous survey completed by almost 8000 physicians.
7/8/16. Severe
Diabetic Retinopathy May Be Associated With Depression, Study Suggests
MedPage Today (7/7, Minerd) reports,
“Severe diabetic retinopathy...was linked to depression, and its presence
should prompt clinicians to inquire about a patient’s mental health,” research
suggested. The findings of the 519-patient study were published online July 7 in
JAMA Ophthalmology.
7/21/16. Parents Of Extremely Premature Infants May Be More Likely To
Become Depressed Than Parents Of Full-Term, Healthy Infants
Reuters (7/20, Rapaport) reports, “When babies are extremely
premature, parents are about 10 times more likely to become depressed than
mothers and fathers of full-term, healthy infants,” research suggests. Included
in the study were “113 mothers and 101 fathers of preemies, as well as 117
mothers and 151 fathers of healthy, full-term infants.” The findings were published online July 18 in JAMA Pediatrics.
8/12/16. Female Service Members who Experience Combat may have Much Higher Risk of PTSD than Those Who do Not
Reuters (8/10,
Rapaport) reports, “Women in the military who experience combat have a much
greater risk than those who don’t of developing post-traumatic stress disorder
(PTSD) and other mental health issues,” researchers found after examining “data
from post-deployment mental health screenings for more than 42,000 women
enlisted in the US Army and deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan from 2008 to
2011.” The findings were
published online Aug. 1 in the Journal of Traumatic Stress.
I wonder how many other things that were once thought to joyful actually are not.
Dr. Allen, here's one for the next round of "No Shit Sherlock": http://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2016/10/the-effects-of-a-simmering-parental-grudge/503015/#article-comments
ReplyDeleteHi Anonymous,
DeleteThanks for sending that along.
You'd think the ideas in the article would be as obvious as those in the studies I included, but you'd be amazed at what percentage of Mental Health professionals are absolutely CLUELESS about these processes! They think there's something wrong with the kids.
Valuable information in your blog and I really appreciate your work and keep it up dude I really very informative blog about the mental illness nice work.
ReplyDeletemental illness