By Mike Stobbe
The Associated Press
Published May 2, 2013
The suicide rate among middle-aged Americans climbed a startling 28 percent in a decade, a period that included the recession and the mortgage crisis, the government reported Thursday.
The trend was most pronounced among white men and women in that age group. Their suicide rate jumped 40 percent between 1999 and 2010.
But the rates in younger and older people held steady. And there was little change among middle-aged blacks, Hispanics and most other racial and ethnic groups, the report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found.
Why did so many middle-aged whites – that is, those who are 35 to 64 years old – take their own lives?
One theory suggests the recession caused more emotional trauma in whites, who tend not to have the same kind of church support and extended families that blacks and Hispanics do.
The economy was in recession from the end of 2007 until mid-2009. Even well afterward, polls showed most Americans remained worried about weak hiring, a depressed housing market and other problems.
Pat Smith, violence-prevention program coordinator for the Michigan Department of Community Health, said the recession – which hit manufacturing-heavy states particularly hard – may have pushed already-troubled people over the brink. Being unable to find a job or settling for one with lower pay or prestige could add "that final weight to a whole chain of events," she said.
The entire story is here.
Showing posts with label Epidemiology. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Epidemiology. Show all posts
Sunday, May 5, 2013
Wednesday, April 24, 2013
Anxiety, Depression, Relationships
By Allie Grasgreen
Inside Higher Ed
Originally published April 12, 2013
The findings of this year’s survey of college counseling directors about the state of their students and the centers where they treat them look a whole lot like last year’s (in some ways good, in some ways bad).
The percentage of students seeking help for various problems continues to creep up in many areas, and nearly all respondents to the Association for University and College Counseling Center Directors’ annual survey said the number of students with “significant psychological problems” is a growing concern for them. Also still on the slow but (mostly) steady rise are counseling centers’ budgets and staffing levels.
Four hundred directors -- about half the association’s membership -- completed the survey during the 2011-12 academic year. Together, they account for 319,634 students who sought mental health services during that time. The colleges are about split between public and private, mostly four-year, and vary in size and location.
About two-thirds of directors also said they perceived an increase last year in the number of students coming in with “severe psychological problems” (21 percent of students overall) and already taking psychotropic medications (24 percent of students).
Directors also, as has been the case in the past, are unsure whether those students’ needs are being met. About six in 10 directors have psychological services available on their campuses, but 19 percent say what’s available is inadequate.
The entire story is here.
Inside Higher Ed
Originally published April 12, 2013
The findings of this year’s survey of college counseling directors about the state of their students and the centers where they treat them look a whole lot like last year’s (in some ways good, in some ways bad).
The percentage of students seeking help for various problems continues to creep up in many areas, and nearly all respondents to the Association for University and College Counseling Center Directors’ annual survey said the number of students with “significant psychological problems” is a growing concern for them. Also still on the slow but (mostly) steady rise are counseling centers’ budgets and staffing levels.
Four hundred directors -- about half the association’s membership -- completed the survey during the 2011-12 academic year. Together, they account for 319,634 students who sought mental health services during that time. The colleges are about split between public and private, mostly four-year, and vary in size and location.
About two-thirds of directors also said they perceived an increase last year in the number of students coming in with “severe psychological problems” (21 percent of students overall) and already taking psychotropic medications (24 percent of students).
Directors also, as has been the case in the past, are unsure whether those students’ needs are being met. About six in 10 directors have psychological services available on their campuses, but 19 percent say what’s available is inadequate.
The entire story is here.
Wednesday, April 10, 2013
Prescription drug-related deaths continue to rise in U.S.
By Scott Glover and Lisa Girion
The Los Angeles Times
March 29, 2013
Despite efforts by law enforcement and public health officials to curb prescription drug abuse, drug-related deaths in the United States have continued to rise, the latest data show.
Figures from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reveal that drug fatalities increased 3% in 2010, the most recent year for which complete data are available. Preliminary data for 2011 indicate the trend has continued.
The figures reflect all drug deaths, but the increase was propelled largely by prescription painkillers such as OxyContin and Vicodin, according to just-released analyses by CDC researchers.
The numbers were a disappointment for public health officials, who had expressed hope that educational and enforcement programs would stem the rise in fatal overdoses.
“While most things are getting better in the health world, this isn’t,” CDC director Tom Frieden said in an interview. “It’s a big problem, and it’s getting worse.”
Drugs overtook traffic accidents as a cause of death in the country in 2009, and the gap has continued to widen. (Italics and color added).
The entire story is here.
The Los Angeles Times
March 29, 2013
Despite efforts by law enforcement and public health officials to curb prescription drug abuse, drug-related deaths in the United States have continued to rise, the latest data show.
Figures from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reveal that drug fatalities increased 3% in 2010, the most recent year for which complete data are available. Preliminary data for 2011 indicate the trend has continued.
The figures reflect all drug deaths, but the increase was propelled largely by prescription painkillers such as OxyContin and Vicodin, according to just-released analyses by CDC researchers.
The numbers were a disappointment for public health officials, who had expressed hope that educational and enforcement programs would stem the rise in fatal overdoses.
“While most things are getting better in the health world, this isn’t,” CDC director Tom Frieden said in an interview. “It’s a big problem, and it’s getting worse.”
Drugs overtook traffic accidents as a cause of death in the country in 2009, and the gap has continued to widen. (Italics and color added).
The entire story is here.
Saturday, April 6, 2013
A.D.H.D. Seen in 11% of U.S. Children as Diagnoses Rise
By ALAN SCHWARZ and SARAH COHEN
The New York Times
Published: March 31, 2013
Nearly one in five high school age boys in the United States and 11 percent of school-age children over all have received a medical diagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, according to new data from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
These rates reflect a marked rise over the last decade and could fuel growing concern among many doctors that the A.D.H.D. diagnosis and its medication are overused in American children.
The figures showed that an estimated 6.4 million children ages 4 through 17 had received an A.D.H.D. diagnosis at some point in their lives, a 16 percent increase since 2007 and a 41 percent rise in the past decade. About two-thirds of those with a current diagnosis receive prescriptions for stimulants like Ritalin or Adderall, which can drastically improve the lives of those with A.D.H.D. but can also lead to addiction, anxiety and occasionally psychosis.
“Those are astronomical numbers. I’m floored,” said Dr. William Graf, a pediatric neurologist in New Haven and a professor at the Yale School of Medicine. He added, “Mild symptoms are being diagnosed so readily, which goes well beyond the disorder and beyond the zone of ambiguity to pure enhancement of children who are otherwise healthy.”
The entire story is here.
The New York Times
Published: March 31, 2013
Nearly one in five high school age boys in the United States and 11 percent of school-age children over all have received a medical diagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, according to new data from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
These rates reflect a marked rise over the last decade and could fuel growing concern among many doctors that the A.D.H.D. diagnosis and its medication are overused in American children.
The figures showed that an estimated 6.4 million children ages 4 through 17 had received an A.D.H.D. diagnosis at some point in their lives, a 16 percent increase since 2007 and a 41 percent rise in the past decade. About two-thirds of those with a current diagnosis receive prescriptions for stimulants like Ritalin or Adderall, which can drastically improve the lives of those with A.D.H.D. but can also lead to addiction, anxiety and occasionally psychosis.
“Those are astronomical numbers. I’m floored,” said Dr. William Graf, a pediatric neurologist in New Haven and a professor at the Yale School of Medicine. He added, “Mild symptoms are being diagnosed so readily, which goes well beyond the disorder and beyond the zone of ambiguity to pure enhancement of children who are otherwise healthy.”
The entire story is here.
Sunday, December 2, 2012
Hanging Suicides Up in United States
By Steven Reinberg
HealthDay Reporter
Originally published November 20, 2012
A surge in hanging deaths among middle-aged adults appears to be responsible for the notable increase in U.S. suicides between 2000 and 2010, a new study finds.
Hangings accounted for 26 percent of suicides in 2010, up from 19 percent at the start of the decade. Among those aged 45 to 59, suicide by hanging increased 104 percent in that time period, according to the report documenting changing suicide patterns.
Overall, 16 percent more Americans took their own lives in 2010 than in 2000. That's equivalent to 12.1 suicides per 100,000 people compared to 10.4 per 100,000 previously.
"It is important that the huge increase in suicide by hanging be recognized," said lead researcher Susan Baker, founding director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Injury Research and Policy at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore.
The entire story is here.
Monday, November 12, 2012
U.S. Suicide Rate Jumped During Recession as Unemployment Rose
By Phil Serafino
Bloomberg News
Originally posted November 4, 2012
The suicide rate in the U.S. increased during the recession, a sign that rising joblessness took a toll on Americans’ mental health, researchers said.
About 1,580 additional suicides occurred annually in the U.S. from 2008 to 2010 than would have been expected based on statistical trends before the recession, according to a letter published today in the Lancet journal by researchers from the U.K., Hong Kong and the U.S. They looked at suicide mortality statistics from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for 1999 through 2010, according to the letter.
The findings add to evidence from other countries that the recession and debt crisis have harmed mental health. Previous studies found that Greece and Spain, two of the countries hit hardest by the economic duress, showed increases in illnesses including depression.
The entire story is here.
Bloomberg News
Originally posted November 4, 2012
The suicide rate in the U.S. increased during the recession, a sign that rising joblessness took a toll on Americans’ mental health, researchers said.
About 1,580 additional suicides occurred annually in the U.S. from 2008 to 2010 than would have been expected based on statistical trends before the recession, according to a letter published today in the Lancet journal by researchers from the U.K., Hong Kong and the U.S. They looked at suicide mortality statistics from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for 1999 through 2010, according to the letter.
The findings add to evidence from other countries that the recession and debt crisis have harmed mental health. Previous studies found that Greece and Spain, two of the countries hit hardest by the economic duress, showed increases in illnesses including depression.
The entire story is here.
Wednesday, October 3, 2012
Suicide Outbreak Prompts CDC Assessment
Community education and availability of mental health resources are called essential in efforts to limit suicidal behavior.
By Christopher White
Psychiatric News
Originally published September 21, 2012
In the first five months of this year, 11 young people completed suicide in Kent and Sussex counties in Delaware, an increase from the yearly average of four in those aged 12 to 21 from 2009 to 2011.
Reflecting the state’s concern about this troubling development, the Delaware Department of Health and Human Services asked the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to conduct an epidemiological study to determine the rates of fatal and nonfatal suicide behaviors in the area, analyze risk factors, and recommend strategies to prevent future suicides.
Of the 11 decedents, four were students at the same high school, two were students at other local high schools, one was a student at a middle school, one had dropped out of high school, two had graduated from area high schools and were still living in Sussex County, and one was an adult with unknown education history.
The entire story is here.
By Christopher White
Psychiatric News
Originally published September 21, 2012
In the first five months of this year, 11 young people completed suicide in Kent and Sussex counties in Delaware, an increase from the yearly average of four in those aged 12 to 21 from 2009 to 2011.
Reflecting the state’s concern about this troubling development, the Delaware Department of Health and Human Services asked the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to conduct an epidemiological study to determine the rates of fatal and nonfatal suicide behaviors in the area, analyze risk factors, and recommend strategies to prevent future suicides.
Of the 11 decedents, four were students at the same high school, two were students at other local high schools, one was a student at a middle school, one had dropped out of high school, two had graduated from area high schools and were still living in Sussex County, and one was an adult with unknown education history.
The entire story is here.
Suicide, Not Car Crashes, #1 Cause of Injury Death
By Jennifer Warner
WebMD Health News
Originally published September 20, 2012
Suicide has overtaken car crashes as the leading cause of injury-related deaths in the U.S.
(cut)
The top five leading causes of injury-related deaths were:
1. Suicide
2. Motor vehicle crashes
3. Poisoning
4. Falls
5. Homicide
Researchers say the findings demonstrate that suicide is now a global public health issue.
"Our finding that suicide now accounts for more deaths than do traffic crashes echoes similar findings for the European Union, Canada, and China," they write.
Researchers say deaths from unintentional poisoning rose, in part, because of a sharp rise in prescription drug overdoses.
The entire article is here.
Saturday, July 21, 2012
Mental health disorders among troops increased 65 percent since 2000
By Rebecca Ruiz
msnbc.com
Originally published July 12, 2012
Mental health disorders in active-duty troops increased 65 percent since 2000, according to a report released this week by the Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center.
The report looked at a 12-year period between 2000 and 2011 and found that more than 936,000 service members had been diagnosed with at least one mental disorder. Of those diagnoses, about 85 percent were cases of adjustment disorders, depression, alcohol abuse and anxiety, among other conditions.
Between 2003 and 2008, the rate of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) increased nearly sixfold; by 2011, there were more than 100,000 diagnoses. The report, however, did not evaluate mental disorders in relationship to deployments.
The entire story is here.
msnbc.com
Originally published July 12, 2012
Mental health disorders in active-duty troops increased 65 percent since 2000, according to a report released this week by the Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center.
The report looked at a 12-year period between 2000 and 2011 and found that more than 936,000 service members had been diagnosed with at least one mental disorder. Of those diagnoses, about 85 percent were cases of adjustment disorders, depression, alcohol abuse and anxiety, among other conditions.
Between 2003 and 2008, the rate of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) increased nearly sixfold; by 2011, there were more than 100,000 diagnoses. The report, however, did not evaluate mental disorders in relationship to deployments.
The entire story is here.
Monday, May 28, 2012
Mental problems top illness for GIs
By Sig Christenson
San Antonio Express-News
Originally published May 19, 2012
The entire story is here.
San Antonio Express-News
Originally published May 19, 2012
More active-duty troops were hospitalized for mental illnesses last year than any other major malady, a new military report says.
The Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center said 21,735 troops from the services were admitted to hospitals because of mental problems, up dramatically from previous years.
Most were men, with mental disorders the leading cause of hospitalizations for soldiers and Marines — the services that have carried the greatest burden in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Hospitalization rates for all causes among active-duty troops were up during the past decade, with one in every 15 troops treated, but mental-illness admissions grew 50 percent over the past five years.
The entire story is here.
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