Analysis of Silver Alert Reporting System Activations for Missing Adults With Dementia in Texas, 2017 to 2022.

This cross-sectional study analyzes data from Silver Alert activations in Texas from 2017 to 2022 to identify temporal, geographic, and wandering characteristics of missing adults with dementia.

Alcohol Use Disorder Moderates the Effect of Age on Heart Rate Variability in Veterans With Posttraumatic Stress Disorder.

Research on heart rate variability (HRV) in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and comorbid alcohol use disorder (AUD) is limited despite its use as a biomarker of both disorders. This study examined whether AUD comorbidity contributes an additive effect on HRV for veterans with PTSD. HRV was assessed in 70 male Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom veterans with PTSD, including 32 with co-occurring AUD. Mean HRV values for both groups were below the mean for healthy adults, but additive effects of PTSD and AUD on HRV were not observed. Consistent with prior studies, hierarchical regressions showed that HRV decreased with age in the PTSD-only group. However, HRV increased slightly with age among veterans with both PTSD and AUD. This interaction remained significant after controlling for common HRV covariates. These findings support HRV as a biomarker of PTSD and extend research by demonstrating the complex relationship between PTSD and HRV in the context of co-occurring AUD.

Developing a Peer Support Protocol for Improving Veterans' Engagement to Computer-Delivered Cognitive Behavioural Therapy.

BACKGROUND: Computer-delivered cognitive behavioural therapy (cCBT) is an effective alternative to provider-delivered treatment for depression and anxiety, but high attrition poses a significant challenge to its use. Peer support is a feasible approach to improving cCBT engagement, but less is known about its acceptability among Veterans. AIMS: To obtain feedback from Veterans (n = 24) with depression and/or anxiety on their preferences for (a) activities of Veterans Administration Peer Support Specialists (VA PSS) in helping Veterans use Moving Forward, a cCBT-based protocol developed by VA, and (b) methods for delivering support to Veterans using this programme. METHOD: Four focus groups (5-7 Veterans per group) provided feedback to be used in the development of a peer-supported engagement intervention to help Veterans with depression and anxiety use Moving Forward. Content areas included roles that a VA PSS might play in supporting the use of and engagement in Moving Forward, as well as methods of delivering that support. RESULTS: Veteran preferences for PSS activity focused on practical aspects of using Moving Forward, including orientation to the programme, technical support, and monitoring progress. Feedback also suggested that Veterans preferred more personal roles for the PSS, including emotional support, as well as application of Moving Forward to 'real life' problems. CONCLUSIONS: The findings extend the literature on online, patient-facing mental health protocols by identifying emotional support and 'real life' skills application as Veteran-preferred components of a peer-support protocol designed to enhance use of and engagement in cCBT for depression and anxiety.

Prescription Opioid Analgesics Increase Risk of Major Depression: New Evidence, Plausible Neurobiological Mechanisms and Management to Achieve Depression Prophylaxis.

More than 200 million prescriptions are written annually for opioid analgesics despite limited evidence of their long-term efficacy. These medications currently are prescribed to 10% - 15% of Americans with use of long-acting opioids projected to double in the next three to four years. Despite this widespread use, little is known about the risks of opioids, particularly with chronic use. New data from our research group published in the Journal of General Internal Medicine provides clear evidence that prescription opioid used for non-cancer, non-HIV pain increases significantly the risk of development of major depressive disorder in opioid naïve individuals with no recent history of depression and substance used disorders. The risk of depression increased as the dose and/or the duration of opioid use increased. The purpose of the present paper is to elucidate the details of this study, to examine potential neurobiological mechanisms responsible for the depressogenic effect of opioid analgesics, and to discuss management options that emphasize depression prophylaxis.

Treatment of earthquake-related craniofacial injuries aboard the USNS Comfort during Operation Unified Response.

BACKGROUND: Craniofacial injuries secondary to earthquake-related trauma are uncommonly reported and can pose a significant reconstructive challenge. The objective of this study is to report and analyze earthquake-related craniofacial injury reconstruction and the disaster relief capabilities of a U.S. Navy hospital ship. METHODS: A review of earthquake-related injuries treated over 40 days requiring craniofacial reconstruction onboard a U.S. Navy hospital ship was performed. RESULTS: From January 20 to February 28, 2010 (40 days), 869 patients were admitted to the USNS Comfort. Thirty-three patients (4 percent) treated by the craniofacial service underwent 93 craniofacial surgical procedures. Average patient hospitalization time was 17 days (range, 5 to 38 days). The fractures treated included nine mandibles, 12 zygomaticomaxillary-orbital complexes, 16 orbital floors, eight Le Fort, four naso-orbitoethmoid, and two cranial vault fractures. The soft-tissue injuries treated were two heminasal avulsions, two traumatic cleft lips, and eight other complex facial lacerations. Short-term complications included wound dehiscence (6 percent) and postoperative malocclusion (6 percent). There were no postsurgical wound infections, visual field changes, or mortality. CONCLUSIONS: Complex craniofacial surgery services can be safely delivered onboard a United States Navy hospital ship for devastating injuries caused by natural disasters. Although craniofacial injuries represented a small percentage of the total patients admitted to our hospital ship, the survivors of facial injury required complex and multiple procedures to achieve optimal results. Despite heavy wound contamination and the intrinsic delay in presentation associated with mass casualty triage, facial fractures can be treated adequately and with low morbidity and mortality.