Suicide Rates By Month And Demographic Characteristics: United States 2020
The November 2021 issue of a report from the National Vital Statistics System refers to provisional numbers of deaths due to suicide by demographic characteristics (sex and race and Hispanic origin), and by month for 2020, and compares them with final numbers for 2019. The overall age-adjusted suicide rate declined 3%, with the decline for females (8%) greater than males (2%). Rates for persons aged 10–34 were higher in 2020 than in 2019, whereas rates for persons aged 35 and over were lower. The increases for those aged 25–34 and the declines for those aged 35–74 were significant. The changes in suicide rates by age between 2019 and 2020 were generally similar for both males and females, although only males had a significant increase at ages 25–34. All race and ethnicity groups for women had declines in age-adjusted suicide rates from 2019 to 2020, although only the 10% decline for non-Hispanic white women was significant statistically.
Access To Care And Mental Health Services By Household Income During COVID, U.S.
Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, approximately 40% of U.S. adults have experienced delayed medical care. As described on November 9, 2021 online in the journal Health Equity, researchers used the Census Bureau's nationally representative pooled 2020 Household Pulse Survey from April to December, 2020 (N=778,819) to analyze trends and inequalities in various access to care measures. During the pandemic, the odds of being uninsured, having a delayed medical care due to pandemic, delayed care of something other than COVID-19, or delayed mental health care were, respectively, 5.54, 1.50, 1.85, and 2.18 times higher for adults with income <$25,000, compared to those with incomes ≥$200,000, controlling for age, sex, race/ethnicity, education, marital status, housing tenure, region of residence, and survey month. Income inequities in mental health care widened over the course of the pandemic, while the probability of delayed mental health care increased for all income groups.
HEALTH TECHNOLOGY CORNER
Mathematical Model For Checkpoint Inhibitor Therapy In Human Solid Tumors
Checkpoint inhibitor therapy of cancer has led to markedly improved survival of a subset of patients in multiple solid malignant tumor types, yet the factors driving these clinical responses or lack thereof are not known. As reported on November 9, 2021 in the journal eLife, researchers from The Houston Methodist Research Institute and several other institutions developed a mechanistic mathematical model for better understanding these factors and their relations in order to predict treatment outcome and optimize personal treatment strategies. The results have demonstrated reliable methods to inform model parameters directly from biopsy samples, which are conveniently obtainable as early as the start of treatment. Together, these suggest that the model parameters may serve as early and robust biomarkers of the efficacy of checkpoint inhibitor therapy on an individualized per-patient basis. The model could provide a way of identifying patients who will benefit from immunotherapy at an early stage in their cancer treatment.
Effect Of A Diagnosis Of Alzheimer's Disease And Related Dementias On Social Relationships
Although early diagnosis has been recognized as a key strategy to improve outcomes of Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD), the effect of receiving a diagnosis on patients' well-being is not well understood. A study conducted by investigators at Rutger University that was described on October 14, 2021 online in the journal Dementia and Geriatric Cognitive Disorders addresses this gap by examining whether receiving a dementia diagnosis influences social relationships. Data from the three waves (2012, 2014, and 2016) of the Health and Retirement Study were used as part of this study. Results suggest that receiving a new diagnosis of ADRD may have unintended impacts on social relationships. Practitioners and policymakers should be aware of these consequences and should identify strategies to alleviate the negative impact of receiving a diagnosis of ADRD and methods to mobilize support networks after receiving a diagnosis.