Dementia risk factors, new depression therapy: Here are the top psych stories of 2024
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At the Alzheimer's Association International Conference, the Lancet Commission unveiled two new modifiable risk factors for dementia: high cholesterol and vision loss.
Tackling these plus the 12 previously identified risk factors beginning in childhood could prevent or delay nearly half of dementia cases worldwide, according to the commission. It was Healio’s top psychiatry story of 2024.
Other top stories include the FDA clearance of a transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) device for major depressive disorder, an interview with a sleep expert about the health consequences of seasonal clock changes, and the stigma that clinicians face when seeking mental health care.
Read these and more of the year’s most-read stories in psychiatry below:
Eliminating these 14 risk factors may prevent nearly half of dementia cases
Tackling 14 risk factors for dementia beginning in childhood could prevent or delay nearly half of cases worldwide, according to a report from the Lancet Commission. Read more.
FDA grants clearance to TMS device for MDD in young people
The FDA has granted clearance to a TMS device as an adjunctive treatment for major depressive disorder in patients aged 15 to 21 years, according to the manufacturer. Read more.
Q&A: US ‘should end seasonal clock change’ by adopting permanent standard time
Healio spoke with Karin Johnson, MD, FAAN, FAASM, professor of neurology at UMass Chan School of Medicine-Baystate and a fierce proponent of standard time, to understand the effects of clock changes and the feasibility of a single-time solution. Read more.
Stigma is ‘common thread’ among clinician suicides
At the Ending Clinician Burnout Global Summit, J. Corey Feist, JD, MBA, CEO and co-founder of the Dr. Lorna Breen Heroes’ Foundation, discussed how health care leaders can address the stigma and barriers that physicians face when seeking mental health care. Read more.
‘It’s not mental health’: Experts attribute rise in mass violence to ‘hate and anger’
Although still rare, mass violence is increasing in the United States, according to a recent report. But blaming this increase on mental illness “is unethical and ineffective,” the authors wrote. Read more.
CDC releases first update for investigating, addressing suicide clusters since 1988
In a three-part supplement series published in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, the CDC released updated and expanded guidance for community assessment and response to suicide clusters for the first time since 1988. Read more.
APA updates borderline personality disorder treatment guidelines
Updated guidelines from the American Psychiatric Association highlight psychotherapy as “the core of treatment” for borderline personality disorder in adolescents and adults. Read more.
Drugs for diabetes, weight loss may also help treat substance use disorders
Ozempic (semaglutide, Novo Nordisk) and similar drugs for diabetes and weight-related conditions were associated with a 40% lower rate of opioid overdose and 50% lower rate of alcohol intoxication in people with opioid and alcohol use disorders, a study showed. Read more.
Processed red meat intake linked to 14% higher risk for dementia
Individuals who consumed about two weekly servings of processed red meat had a 14% higher risk for dementia, as well as accelerated cognitive aging, vs. those who ate less than three servings a month, according to research. Read more.
Sleep fragmentation in early midlife linked with worse cognition in later years
Sleep fragmentation, rather than sleep duration or self-reported sleep quality, in early midlife was associated with worse executive function, fluency and cognition more than a decade later, according to research in Neurology. Read more.