Emergency Department Visits Related To Mental Health Disorders
A new report from the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) describes emergency department (ED) visits related to mental health disorders among adults and assesses differences in mental health-related ED visit characteristics by race and Hispanic ethnicity. Nationally representative estimates in this report are derived from data collected in the 2018–2020 National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NHAMCS). Rates of mental health-related ED visits by race and Hispanic ethnicity were highest among non-Hispanic Black adults (96.8 visits per 1,000 adults), followed by non-Hispanic White (53.4) and Hispanic (36.0) adults. Rates of ED visits for specific mental health disorders, including substance use disorders, anxiety disorders, and mood disorders, were also highest among non-Hispanic Black adults. A higher percentage of visits by Hispanic (57.7%) and non-Hispanic Black (49.5%) adults had Medicaid as the expected primary source of payment than visits by non-Hispanic White adults (36.1%).
Skull Fractures In Female Versus Male Geriatric Patients Who Sustain Head Injuries
Head trauma is the leading cause of serious injury in the older adult population with skull fractures as a serious reported outcome. A study described in the March 2023 issue of The American Journal of Emergency Medicine that was conducted at two level-one trauma centers, serving a population of 360,000 geriatric residents aimed to evaluate the role of sex in the risk of skull fracture in patients over the age of 65. Among 5,402 patients enrolled, 3,010 (56%) were female and 2,392 (44%) were male. 4,612 (85%) of the head injuries sustained were due to falls, and 4,536 (90%) of all subjects were Caucasian. Overall, 199 patients (3.7%) sustained skull fractures. Males had a significantly greater rate of skull fracture when compared to females (4.6% vs 3.0%, OR 1.5, 95% CI: 1.2–2.1, p = 0.002). This trend also was seen across race/ethnicity and mechanism of injury. The outcome was unexpected, since previous literature indicated females being more susceptible to facial fracture.
HEALTH TECHNOLOGY CORNER
Inhalable Hydrogel Protects Lungs From SARS-Cov-2
Mutations in SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, continue to produce new virus variants. Some mutations may confer resistance to the immunity induced by vaccines or prior SARS-CoV-2 infections. Thus, there is a need for strategies that could prevent infection by a range of SARS-CoV-2 variants. Physical barriers, such as the mucus lining of the airways, provide the first line of defense against infections. A research team at North Carolina State University set out to develop a way to reinforce this mucus barrier. They described their method, dubbed spherical hydrogel inhalation for enhanced lung defense, or SHIELD, in the journal Nature Materials on February 9, 2023. SHIELD consists of an inhalable powder of fine particles, less than 5 μm across, made from an absorbent polymer. The team tested whether it could protect against virus infection in mice. It was not toxic to cells in culture, and did not affect normal lung function in mice after two weeks of daily dosing.
Technological Solutions To Loneliness—Are They Enough?
Loneliness is a major public health concern, particularly during pandemics such as COVID-19. It is extremely common and it poses a major risk to human health, such as higher rates of depression and increased mortality.Technological solutions including social media, robots, and virtual reality have been advocated and implemented to relieve loneliness. A paper in the March 2022 issue of the journal Bioethics explores the use of technological solutions from a normative perspective, asking whether and to what extent such measures should indeed be relied upon. A conclusion is that technological solutions are unquestionably part of the solution to loneliness, but that they cannot and should not constitute the whole solution because they arguably are insufficient to alleviate loneliness wholly and should not be perceived as sufficient. Another conclusion is that the essence of what it means to be human or the essence of human interactions cannot be substituted entirely by technological measures, sophisticated as they may be.