Bipolar Depression Pill Fails; Magnetic Seizure vs ECT; Lifetime Loneliness Curve

Compared with lurasidone (Latuda), the investigational oral antidepressant NRX-101 did not significantly reduce suicidality in people with bipolar depression and missed statistical significance in reducing symptoms of akathisia in a phase IIb/III trial, said developer NRx Pharmaceuticals.

Meanwhile, investigational evenamide met its primary endpoint as an adjunctive treatment in a phase II/III study of people with chronic schizophrenia who did not adequately respond to second-generation antipsychotics, Newron Pharmaceuticals announced.

A small trial of people with bipolar mania suggested response rates with magnetic seizure therapy were comparable to those with modified electroconvulsive therapy with fewer effects on language ability. (JAMA Network Open)

About 75% of Americans said they felt mental health conditions were identified and treated much worse than physical health issues in the U.S. healthcare system, according to a West Health and Gallup survey.

The FDA approved Amneal Pharmaceuticals’ generic over-the-counter naloxone nasal spray for emergency treatment of an opioid overdose.

Veterans Crisis Line caring letters didn’t prevent suicide attempts, but were associated with a boost in outpatient and inpatient mental health care use among veterans. (JAMA Network Open)

Children and adolescents in higher fitness quantiles had lower cumulative incidences of anxiety disorders, depressive disorders, and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, a study in Taiwan showed. (JAMA Pediatrics)

The risk of clozapine-induced agranulocytosis — a life-threatening adverse event — sharply dropped over time, but might be persistently higher in clozapine versus non-clozapine antipsychotics, a study of people with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder in Finland found. (Lancet Psychiatry)

Mental health diagnoses rose in all age groups and in all states since 2019, a FAIR Health analysis of private healthcare claims reported.

Loneliness followed a U-shaped curve throughout life: it was higher in younger and older adulthood, and lowest during middle adulthood, according to an analysis of nine studies. (Psychological Sciences)

Compared with premenopausal women, perimenopausal women had a 40% higher risk for depressive symptoms and diagnoses, which fell after menopause, a meta-analysis showed. (Journal of Affective Disorders)

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