Kids’ Depression Tied to 66 Diseases; Binge Drinking in Lockdown

Youth depression was tied to increased risk for 66 medical conditions. “It underscores how important it is that these children and teenagers receive the help they need and that medical personnel monitor for subsequent psychiatric and somatic diseases,” said study author Sarah Bergen, PhD, of the Karolinska Institute, in a statement. (JAMA Psychiatry)

Google recently launched an online screener to help identify women suffering from postpartum depression.

As telehealth gains popularity among psychiatrists during the COVID-19 pandemic, some challenges still linger, especially for older patients. (Harvard Business Review)

Risk of binge drinking rose 19% for each additional week of lockdown during the pandemic. (American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse)

Mental health themes are gaining attention in rap music in recent years. (JAMA Pediatrics)

Although the COVID-19 pandemic certainly hasn’t helped anyone’s depressive, anxiety, or obsessive-compulsive disorders, it likely hasn’t magnified pre-existing symptom severity either. (The Lancet Psychiatry)

The number of drug-related overdoses among young American kids has increased from 2016 to 2019, especially from psychostimulants, including amphetamines and MDMA. (Pediatrics)

Sticking to a sequential model of depression treatment — integrating psychotherapy following response to acute-phase pharmacotherapy with or without combination antidepressant treatment — helped reduce the risk of relapse. (JAMA Psychiatry)