text: From traumatic brain injury to the dangers of excessive social media usage, here are highlights from the week in Psychiatric Times.
  This week, Psychiatric TimesTM covered a wide variety of psychiatric issues and industry updates, from helping employers understand traumatic brain injury to understanding—and combatting—the dangers of excessive social media usage. Here are some highlights from the week.
  Expert Sheds Light on Opioid Overdose Crisis in Youth
  “It’s not just an opioid crisis, it is a polysubstance crisis,” Scott Hadland, MD, MPH, MS, FAAP, told attendees of the 2022 American Academy of Pediatrics National Conference and Exhibition in Anaheim, CA. Hadland, Chief of Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine at MassGeneral Hospital for Children and Harvard Medical School, shared insights into the use and abuse of opioids in youth in the US. Hadland is triple board certification in General Pediatrics, Adolescent Medicine, and Addiction Medicine. Continue Reading
  Helping Employers Understand Traumatic Brain Injury: Setting Up for Success
  Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a physical trauma to the head that results in impaired function of the brain. TBI is a life-changing event not only for the individual who is injured, but also for those who surround them. A single patient’s TBI reverberates even further. Injured workers are necessarily removed from their workplace ecosystem, causing more disruption. Employers with little experience and understanding of TBI are left with the uncertainty of the individual’s recovery. Continue Reading
  Understanding the Long-Term Clinical Course of Comorbid SUD and ADHD
  While substance use disorders (SUDs) often cooccur with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), little is known about the long-term clinical course of patients with comorbid SUD and ADHD.
  The International Naturalistic Cohort Study of ADHD and SUD (INCAS) is a prospective observational cohort study of treatment-seeking individuals with SUD and comorbid adult ADHD and was designed to examine the clinical course in different treatment settings and countries. Investigators detailed treatment modalities; how age, gender, primary substance of abuse, and other psychiatric comorbidities affected treatment outcomes; and longitudinal data on a broad range of psychological measures, like cognitive symptoms. Continue Reading
  The Dangers of Excessive Social Media Usage
  Halloween is right around the corner, and this is a time that many enjoy experiencing haunted houses, dressing up, adorning their homes with creepy decorations, and watching scary movies filled with terrifying creatures, things that are hidden in the dark, and paranormal and supernatural entities. However, as a psychiatrist, what I find scarier than any of these things is something we all deal with on a daily basis: the damage that excessive social media use is causing on our society.
  Our culture glorifies celebrities and gaining exposure over various media platforms, and social media has provided the opportunity for such success to a much greater number of people. Individuals often utilize these mediums to espouse opinions and misinformation that is often consumed by users as fact. This is every mental health professional’s worst nightmare. Continue Reading
  Do you have a comment on any of these or other articles? Have a good idea for an article and want to write? Interested in sharing your perspectives? Write to us at email@example.com.