Trends in Drug Overdose Deaths by Intent and Drug Categories, United States, 1999‒2022.

Objectives. To examine trends in overdose deaths by intent and drug category to better understand the recent decrease in overdose suicides amid the overdose epidemic. Methods. We examined trends in rates of overdose deaths by intent (unintentional, suicide, or undetermined) across 9 drug categories from 1999 to 2022 using US National Vital Statistics System mortality data. Results. Unintentional overdoses involving synthetic opioids, polydrug toxicity involving synthetic opioids, psychostimulants, and cocaine increased exponentially with annual percentage changes ranging from 15.0% to 104.9% during 2010 to 2022. The death rates also increased for suicides involving these drugs, especially for psychostimulants (annual percentage change = 12.9% for 2010-2022; P < .001). However, these drugs accounted for relatively small percentages of overdose suicides. The leading drug categories among suicides were antidepressants, prescription opioids, and benzodiazepines, though these deaths have decreased or leveled off in recent years. Conclusions. Different drugs commonly involved in suicides and unintentional overdoses may contribute to their divergent trends. Public Health Implications. Amid the overdose epidemic, safe storage of medications remains a crucial strategy to prevent overdose suicides. The large increases in suicides involving psychostimulants warrant monitoring. (Am J Public Health. 2024;114(10):1081-1085. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2024.307745).

Cannabis-Involved Emergency Department Visits Among Persons Aged <25 Years Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic - United States, 2019-2022.

To understand trends in U.S. cannabis-involved emergency department (ED) visits (i.e., those for which cannabis use was documented in the chief complaint or a discharge diagnosis) among young persons aged <25 years during the COVID-19 pandemic, CDC used National Syndromic Surveillance Program data to examine changes in ED visits during 2019-2022. Mean weekly cannabis-involved ED visits among all young persons were higher during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, 2021, and 2022, compared with corresponding periods in 2019. Large increases in cannabis-involved ED visits throughout the COVID-19 pandemic compared with prepandemic surveillance periods in 2019 were identified among persons aged ≤10 years. ED visit rates among children and adolescents aged 11-14 years did not differ by sex until the first half of the 2020-21 school year (2020, weeks 37-53), when ED visit rates among females surpassed those among males. Improving clinicians' awareness of rising cannabis-involved ED visits might aid in early diagnosis of cannabis intoxication among young persons. Further, increasing adults' knowledge regarding safe cannabis storage practices, strengthening youths' coping and problem-solving skills through evidence-based prevention programs, and modifying cannabis packaging to decrease appeal to youths might help prevent intentional and unintentional cannabis use.

Emergency Department Visits for Firearm Injuries Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic - United States, January 2019-December 2022.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. firearm homicide rate increased by nearly 35%, and the firearm suicide rate remained high during 2019-2020 (1). Provisional mortality data from the National Vital Statistics System indicate that rates continued to increase in 2021: the rates of firearm homicide and firearm suicide in 2021 were the highest recorded since 1993 and 1990, respectively (2). Firearm injuries treated in emergency departments (EDs), the primary setting for the immediate medical treatment of such injuries, gradually increased during 2018-2019 (3); however, more recent patterns of ED visits for firearm injuries, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic, are unknown. Using data from the National Syndromic Surveillance Program (NSSP),* CDC examined changes in ED visits for initial firearm injury encounters during January 2019-December 2022, by year, patient sex, and age group. Increases in the overall weekly number of firearm injury ED visits were detected at certain periods during the COVID-19 pandemic. One such period during which there was a gradual increase was March 2020, which coincided with both the declaration of COVID-19 as a national emergency† and a pronounced decrease in the total number of ED visits. Another increase in firearm injury ED visits occurred in late May 2020, concurrent with a period marked by public outcry related to social injustice and structural racism (4), changes in state-level COVID-19-specific prevention strategies,§ decreased engagement in COVID-19 mitigation behaviors (5), and reported increases in some types of crime (4). Compared with 2019, the average number of weekly ED visits for firearm injury was 37% higher in 2020, 36% higher in 2021, and 20% higher in 2022. A comprehensive approach is needed to prevent and respond to firearm injuries in communities, including strategies that engage community and street outreach programs, implement hospital-based violence prevention programs, improve community physical environments, enhance secure storage of firearms, and strengthen social and economic supports.

Emergency Department Visits Involving Mental Health Conditions, Suicide-Related Behaviors, and Drug Overdoses Among Adolescents - United States, January 2019-February 2023.

The U.S. adolescent mental and behavioral health crisis is ongoing,* with high pre-COVID-19 pandemic baseline rates† (1) and further increases in poor mental health (2), suicide-related behaviors (3), and drug overdose deaths (4) reported during 2020-2021. CDC examined changes in U.S. emergency department (ED) visits for mental health conditions (MHCs) overall and for nine specific MHCs,§ suicide-related behaviors (including suspected suicide attempts), and drug-involved overdoses (including opioids) among children and adolescents aged 12-17 years (adolescents) during January 2019-February 2023, overall and by sex. Compared with fall 2021, by fall 2022, decreases in weekly ED visits were reported among all adolescents, and females specifically, for MHCs overall, suicide-related behaviors, and drug overdoses; weekly ED visits among males were stable. During this same period, increases in weekly ED visits for opioid-involved overdoses were detected. Mean weekly ED visits in fall 2022 for suicide-related behaviors and MHCs overall were at or lower than the 2019 prepandemic baseline, respectively, and drug overdose visits were higher. Differences by sex were observed; levels among females were at or higher than prepandemic baselines for these conditions. These findings suggest some improvements as of fall 2022 in the trajectory of adolescent mental and behavioral health, as measured by ED visits; however, poor mental and behavioral health remains a substantial public health problem, particularly among adolescent females. Early identification and trauma-informed interventions, coupled with expanded evidence-based, comprehensive prevention efforts, are needed to support adolescents' mental and behavioral health.

Association between traumatic brain injury and suicidality using a mediation approach and MarketScan.

INTRODUCTION: Negative outcomes, including suicidal ideation/attempts, are a major public health concern, particularly among individuals who sustain a traumatic brain injury (TBI). TBI is associated with high rates of postinjury substance use, psychiatric disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder and sleep disturbances. This study examines the mediation effects of substance use, psychiatric disorder and sleep disorder on the associations between TBI and suicidal ideation/attempts. METHODS: A matched case-control study using data from MarketScan databases for private health insurance and Medicaid from October 2015 to December 2018 estimated the association between TBI and suicidal ideation/attempts using a mediation approach. Individuals less than 65 years of age were included. RESULTS: In the Medicaid sample, psychiatric disorders mediated 22.4% of the total effect between TBI and suicidal ideation/attempt, while substance use disorders other than opioid use disorder mediated 7.47%. In the private health insurance sample, psychiatric disorders mediated 3.97% of the total effect, opioid use disorders mediated 2.08% of the total effect and sleep disorder mediated 1.25% of the total effect. CONCLUSIONS: Mediators explained less than 30% of the relationship between TBI and suicidal ideation/attempt. Findings reinforce the importance of primary prevention of TBI and monitoring patients with a TBI for risk of suicide in the first 6-12 months following injury.

Using Transformer-Based Topic Modeling to Examine Discussions of Delta-8 Tetrahydrocannabinol: Content Analysis.

BACKGROUND: Delta-8 tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is a psychoactive cannabinoid found in small amounts naturally in the cannabis plant; it can also be synthetically produced in larger quantities from hemp-derived cannabidiol. Most states permit the sale of hemp and hemp-derived cannabidiol products; thus, hemp-derived delta-8 THC products have become widely available in many state hemp marketplaces, even where delta-9 THC, the most prominently occurring THC isomer in cannabis, is not currently legal. Health concerns related to the processing of delta-8 THC products and their psychoactive effects remain understudied. OBJECTIVE: The goal of this study is to implement a novel topic modeling approach based on transformers, a state-of-the-art natural language processing architecture, to identify and describe emerging trends and topics of discussion about delta-8 THC from social media discourse, including potential symptoms and adverse health outcomes experienced by people using delta-8 THC products. METHODS: Posts from January 2008 to December 2021 discussing delta-8 THC were isolated from cannabis-related drug forums on Reddit (Reddit Inc), a social media platform that hosts the largest web-based drug forums worldwide. Unsupervised topic modeling with state-of-the-art transformer-based models was used to cluster posts into topics and assign labels describing the kinds of issues being discussed with respect to delta-8 THC. Results were then validated by human subject matter experts. RESULTS: There were 41,191 delta-8 THC posts identified and 81 topics isolated, the most prevalent being (1) discussion of specific brands or products, (2) comparison of delta-8 THC to other hemp-derived cannabinoids, and (3) safety warnings. About 5% (n=1220) of posts from the resulting topics included content discussing health-related symptoms such as anxiety, sleep disturbance, and breathing problems. Until 2020, Reddit posts contained fewer than 10 mentions of delta-8-THC for every 100,000 cannabis posts annually. However, in 2020, these rates increased by 13 times the 2019 rate (to 99.2 mentions per 100,000 cannabis posts) and continued to increase into 2021 (349.5 mentions per 100,000 cannabis posts). CONCLUSIONS: Our study provides insights into emerging public health concerns around delta-8 THC, a novel substance about which little is known. Furthermore, we demonstrate the use of transformer-based unsupervised learning approaches to derive intelligible topics from highly unstructured discussions of delta-8 THC, which may help improve the timeliness of identification of emerging health concerns related to new substances.

Pediatric Emergency Department Visits Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic - United States, January 2019-January 2022.

Emergency departments (EDs) in the United States remain a frontline resource for pediatric health care emergencies during the COVID-19 pandemic; however, patterns of health-seeking behavior have changed during the pandemic (1,2). CDC examined changes in U.S. ED visit trends to assess the continued impact of the pandemic on visits among children and adolescents aged 0-17 years (pediatric ED visits). Compared with 2019, pediatric ED visits declined by 51% during 2020, 22% during 2021, and 23% during January 2022. Although visits for non-COVID-19 respiratory illnesses mostly declined, the proportion of visits for some respiratory conditions increased during January 2022 compared with 2019. Weekly number and proportion of ED visits increased for certain types of injuries (e.g., drug poisonings, self-harm, and firearm injuries) and some chronic diseases, with variation by pandemic year and age group. Visits related to behavioral concerns increased across pandemic years, particularly among older children and adolescents. Health care providers and families should remain vigilant for potential indirect impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, including health conditions resulting from delayed care, and increasing emotional distress and behavioral health concerns among children and adolescents.

Pediatric Emergency Department Visits Associated with Mental Health Conditions Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic - United States, January 2019-January 2022.

In 2021, a national emergency* for children's mental health was declared by several pediatric health organizations, and the U.S. Surgeon General released an advisory† on mental health among youths. These actions resulted from ongoing concerns about children's mental health in the United States, which was exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic (1,2). During March-October 2020, among all emergency department (ED) visits, the proportion of mental health-related visits increased by 24% among U.S. children aged 5-11 years and 31% among adolescents aged 12-17 years, compared with 2019 (2). CDC examined changes in U.S. pediatric ED visits for overall mental health conditions (MHCs) and ED visits associated with specific MHCs (depression; anxiety; disruptive behavioral and impulse-control disorders; attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder; trauma and stressor-related disorders; bipolar disorders; eating disorders; tic disorders; and obsessive-compulsive disorders [OCD]) during 2019 through January 2022 among children and adolescents aged 0-17 years, overall and by sex and age. After declines in weekly visits associated with MHCs among those aged 0-17 years during 2020, weekly numbers of ED visits for MHCs overall and for specific MHCs varied by age and sex during 2021 and January 2022, when compared with corresponding weeks in 2019. Among adolescent females aged 12-17 years, weekly visits increased for two of nine MHCs during 2020 (eating disorders and tic disorders), for four of nine MHCs during 2021 (depression, eating disorders, tic disorders, and OCD), and for five of nine MHCs during January 2022 (anxiety, trauma and stressor-related disorders, eating disorders, tic disorders, and OCD), and overall MHC visits during January 2022, compared with 2019. Early identification and expanded evidence-based prevention and intervention strategies are critical to improving children's and adolescents' mental health (1-3), especially among adolescent females, who might have increased need.

Using the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Syndromic Surveillance Program Data to Monitor Trends in US Emergency Department Visits for Firearm Injuries, 2018 to 2019.

STUDY OBJECTIVE: We describe trends in emergency department (ED) visits for initial firearm injury encounters in the United States. METHODS: Using data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Syndromic Surveillance Program, we analyzed monthly and yearly trends in ED visit rates involving a firearm injury (calculated as the number of firearm injury-related ED visits divided by the total number of ED visits for each month and multiplied by 100,000) by sex-specific age group and US region from 2018 to 2019 and conducted Joinpoint regression to detect trend significance. RESULTS: Among approximately 215 million ED visits captured in the National Syndromic Surveillance Program from January 2018 to December 2019, 132,767 involved a firearm injury (61.6 per 100,000 ED visits). Among males, rates of firearm injury-related ED visits significantly increased for all age groups between 15 and 64 years during the study period. Among females, rates of firearm injury-related ED visits significantly increased for all age groups between 15 and 54 years during the study period. By region, rates significantly changed in the northeast, southeast, and southwest for males and females during the study period. CONCLUSION: These analyses highlight a novel data source for monitoring trends in ED visits for firearm injuries. With increased and effective use of state and local syndromic surveillance data, in addition to improvements to firearm injury syndrome definitions by intent, public health professionals could better detect unusual patterns of firearm injuries across the United States for improved prevention and tailored response efforts.

Vital Signs: Prevalence of Multiple Forms of Violence and Increased Health Risk Behaviors and Conditions Among Youths - United States, 2019.

INTRODUCTION: Experiencing violence, especially multiple types of violence, can have a negative impact on youths' development. These experiences increase the risk for future violence and other health problems associated with the leading causes of morbidity and mortality among adolescents and adults. METHODS: Data from the 2019 national Youth Risk Behavior Survey were used to determine the prevalence of high school students' self-reported experiences with physical fighting, being threatened with a weapon, physical dating violence, sexual violence, and bullying. Logistic regression models adjusting for sex, grade, and race/ethnicity were used to test the strength of associations between experiencing multiple forms of violence and 16 self-reported health risk behaviors and conditions. RESULTS: Approximately one half of students (44.3%) experienced at least one type of violence; more than one in seven (15.6%) experienced two or more types during the preceding 12 months. Experiencing multiple types of violence was significantly more prevalent among females than among males and among students identifying as gay, lesbian, or bisexual or not sure of their sexual identity than among heterosexual students. Experiencing violence was significantly associated with higher prevalence of all examined health risks and conditions. Relative to youths with no violence experiences, adjusted health risk and condition prevalence estimates were up to seven times higher among those experiencing two types of violence and up to 21 times higher among those experiencing three or more types of violence. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS FOR PUBLIC HEALTH PRACTICE: Many youths experience multiple types of violence, with potentially lifelong health impacts. Violence is preventable using proven approaches that address individual, family, and environmental risks. Prioritizing violence prevention is strategic to promoting adolescent and adult health.

Emergency Department Visits for Suspected Suicide Attempts Among Persons Aged 12-25 Years Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic - United States, January 2019-May 2021.

Beginning in March 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic and response, which included physical distancing and stay-at-home orders, disrupted daily life in the United States. Compared with the rate in 2019, a 31% increase in the proportion of mental health-related emergency department (ED) visits occurred among adolescents aged 12-17 years in 2020 (1). In June 2020, 25% of surveyed adults aged 18-24 years reported experiencing suicidal ideation related to the pandemic in the past 30 days (2). More recent patterns of ED visits for suspected suicide attempts among these age groups are unclear. Using data from the National Syndromic Surveillance Program (NSSP),* CDC examined trends in ED visits for suspected suicide attempts† during January 1, 2019-May 15, 2021, among persons aged 12-25 years, by sex, and at three distinct phases of the COVID-19 pandemic. Compared with the corresponding period in 2019, persons aged 12-25 years made fewer ED visits for suspected suicide attempts during March 29-April 25, 2020. However, by early May 2020, ED visit counts for suspected suicide attempts began increasing among adolescents aged 12-17 years, especially among girls. During July 26-August 22, 2020, the mean weekly number of ED visits for suspected suicide attempts among girls aged 12-17 years was 26.2% higher than during the same period a year earlier; during February 21-March 20, 2021, mean weekly ED visit counts for suspected suicide attempts were 50.6% higher among girls aged 12-17 years compared with the same period in 2019. Suicide prevention measures focused on young persons call for a comprehensive approach, that is adapted during times of infrastructure disruption, involving multisectoral partnerships (e.g., public health, mental health, schools, and families) and implementation of evidence-based strategies (3) that address the range of factors influencing suicide risk.

Mental Health-Related Emergency Department Visits Among Children Aged <18 Years During the COVID-19 Pandemic - United States, January 1-October 17, 2020.

Published reports suggest that the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has had a negative effect on children's mental health (1,2). Emergency departments (EDs) are often the first point of care for children experiencing mental health emergencies, particularly when other services are inaccessible or unavailable (3). During March 29-April 25, 2020, when widespread shelter-in-place orders were in effect, ED visits for persons of all ages declined 42% compared with the same period in 2019; during this time, ED visits for injury and non-COVID-19-related diagnoses decreased, while ED visits for psychosocial factors increased (4). To assess changes in mental health-related ED visits among U.S. children aged <18 years, data from CDC's National Syndromic Surveillance Program (NSSP) from January 1 through October 17, 2020, were compared with those collected during the same period in 2019. During weeks 1-11 (January 1-March 15, 2020), the average reported number of children's mental health-related ED visits overall was higher in 2020 than in 2019, whereas the proportion of children's mental health-related visits was similar. Beginning in week 12 (March 16) the number of mental health-related ED visits among children decreased 43% concurrent with the widespread implementation of COVID-19 mitigation measures; simultaneously, the proportion of mental health-related ED visits increased sharply beginning in mid-March 2020 (week 12) and continued into October (week 42) with increases of 24% among children aged 5-11 years and 31% among adolescents aged 12-17 years, compared with the same period in 2019. The increased proportion of children's mental health-related ED visits during March-October 2020 might be artefactually inflated as a consequence of the substantial decrease in overall ED visits during the same period and variation in the number of EDs reporting to NSSP. However, these findings provide initial insight into children's mental health in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and highlight the importance of continued monitoring of children's mental health throughout the pandemic, ensuring access to care during public health crises, and improving healthy coping strategies and resiliency among children and families.

Trends in U.S. Emergency Department Visits Related to Suspected or Confirmed Child Abuse and Neglect Among Children and Adolescents Aged <18 Years Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic - United States, January 2019-September 2020.

Heightened stress, school closures, loss of income, and social isolation resulting from the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic have increased the risk for child abuse and neglect (1). Using National Syndromic Surveillance Program (NSSP) data from January 6, 2019-September 6, 2020, CDC tabulated weekly numbers of emergency department (ED) visits related to child abuse and neglect and calculated the proportions of such visits per 100,000 ED visits, as well as the percentage of suspected or confirmed ED visits related to child abuse and neglect ending in hospitalization, overall and stratified by age group (0-4, 5-11, and 12-17 years). The total number of ED visits related to child abuse and neglect began decreasing below the corresponding 2019 period during week 11 (March 15-March 22, 2020) for all age groups examined, coinciding with the declaration of a national emergency on March 13 (2); simultaneously, the proportion of these visits per 100,000 ED visits began increasing above the 2019 baseline for all age groups. Despite decreases in the weekly number of ED visits related to child abuse and neglect, the weekly number of these visits resulting in hospitalization remained stable in 2020; however, the yearly percentage of ED visits related to child abuse and neglect resulting in hospitalization increased significantly among all age groups. Although the increased proportion of ED visits related to child abuse and neglect might be associated with a decrease in the overall number of ED visits, these findings also suggest that health care-seeking patterns have shifted during the pandemic. Hospitalizations for child abuse and neglect did not decrease in 2020, suggesting that injury severity did not decrease during the pandemic, despite decreased ED visits. Child abuse is preventable; implementation of strategies including strengthening household economic supports and creating family-friendly work policies can reduce stress during difficult times and increase children's opportunities to thrive in safe, stable, and nurturing relationships and environments (3).

Syndromic Surveillance of Suicidal Ideation and Self-Directed Violence - United States, January 2017-December 2018.

Suicide is a growing public health problem in the United States, claiming approximately 47,000 lives in 2017 (1). However, deaths from suicide represent only a small part of a larger problem because each year millions of persons experience suicidal ideation and engage in suicidal and nonsuicidal self-directed violence, both risk factors for suicide (2). Emergency departments (EDs) are an important setting for monitoring these events in near real time (3-5). From 2001 to 2016, ED visit rates for nonfatal self-harm increased 42% among persons aged ≥10 years (1). Using data from CDC's National Syndromic Surveillance Program (NSSP), ED visits for suicidal ideation, self-directed violence, or both among persons aged ≥10 years during January 2017-December 2018 were examined by sex, age group, and U.S. region. During the 24-month period, the rate of ED visits for suicidal ideation, self-directed violence, or both increased 25.5% overall, with an average increase of 1.2% per month. Suicide prevention requires comprehensive and multisectoral approaches to addressing risk at personal, relationship, community, and societal levels. ED syndromic surveillance data can provide timely trend information and can support more targeted and prompt public health investigation and response. CDC's Preventing Suicide: A Technical Package of Policy, Programs, and Practices includes tailored suicide prevention strategies for health care settings (6).

Student-Reported School Safety Perceptions, Connectedness, and Absenteeism Following a Multiple-Fatality School Shooting - Broward County, Florida, February 14-21, 2018.

From July 2009 to June 2018, the rates of multiple-victim, school-associated homicides in the United States fluctuated substantially, with evidence of a significant increase in recent years (1). Data on the effects of such incidents on students' school attendance and perceptions of safety and connectedness are limited (2,3) but important. This study used data from a neighboring within-district school before and after a multiple-fatality shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, on February 14, 2018. Self-administered questionnaires were completed by one group of students on February 14 just before the shooting (575) and another group during February 15-21 (502); demographics for these groups appeared similar. Linear and logistic regression analyses controlling for demographic characteristics explored differences between groups for safety-related perceptions or experiences, school connectedness, and absenteeism. Compared with students surveyed before the shooting, students surveyed in the days immediately following the shooting had lower odds of feeling safe at school, higher odds of absenteeism, and higher school connectedness scores. Findings suggest the shooting had an immediate, sizeable effect on safety perceptions and absenteeism among students in a neighboring school. Findings also suggest higher school connectedness following the shooting. Further study of school connectedness, including how to enhance and sustain it, might help schools and communities better respond to traumatic events in the community.

National Trends in hospitalizations for self-directed violence related to opioids and/or depression - United States, 2000-2015.

This study examined national trends in self-directed violence in the context of changes in opioid use and depression to better inform prevention measures. Using 2000-2015 National Inpatient Sample (NIS) data, we identified 625,064 hospitalizations for self-directed violence among persons aged ≥10 years in the United States. Based on whether co-listing opioid related diagnosis and depression, we categorized hospitalizations for self-directed violence into four comorbid categories as 1) related to opioids alone; 2) related to depression alone; 3) related to both opioids and depression; and 4) related to neither opioids nor depression. Census population estimates served as the denominator for calculating hospitalization rates for self-directed violence. Hospitalization rates for self-directed violence related to opioids doubled from 5.1 per 100,000 persons in 2000 to 11.0 in 2015. The rate of increase was highest for self-directed violence related to both opioids and depression, which increased 9.4% annually during 2000-2011 and then decreased 4.3% annually during 2011-2015. Hospitalizations for self-directed violence related to depression alone remained the predominant category, accounting for approximately 60% of hospitalizations for self-directed violence; the rates among females aged 10-24 years were the highest among all subgroups, and rose 7.8% annually since 2011 reaching 93.2 per 100,000 persons in 2015. These findings highlight the importance of assessing the risk for self-directed violence among patients misusing opioids and the importance of treating opioid use disorder and depression, particularly when they co-occur. Prevention and treatment of depression is especially important for young females.

Conversational topics of social media messages associated with state-level mental distress rates.

Background: Upstream public health indicators of poor mental health in the United States (U.S.) are currently measured by national telephone-based surveys; however, results are delayed by 1-2 years, limiting real-time assessment of trends.Aim: The aim of this study was to evaluate associations between conversational topics on Twitter from 2018 to 2019 and mental distress rates from 2017 to 2018 for the 50 U.S. states and capital.Method: We used a novel lexicon, Empath, to examine conversational topics from aggregate social media messages from Twitter that correlated most strongly with official U.S. state-level rates of mental distress from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System.Results: The ten lexical categories most positively correlated with rates of frequent mental distress at the state-level included categories about death, illness, or injury. Lexical categories most inversely correlated with mental distress included categories that serve as proxies for economic prosperity and industry. Using the prevalence of the 10 most positively and 10 most negatively correlated lexical categories to predict state-level rates of mental distress via a linear regression model on an independent sample of data yielded estimates that were moderately similar to actual rates (mean difference = 0.52%; Pearson correlation = 0.45, p < 0.001).Conclusion: This work informs efforts to use social media to measure population-level trends in mental health.

Characteristics of School-Associated Youth Homicides - United States, 1994-2018.

To understand trends and characteristics in school-associated homicides involving youths, data from CDC's School-Associated Violent Death Surveillance System were analyzed for 393 single-victim incidents that occurred during July 1994-June 2016 and 38 multiple-victim incidents (resulting in 121 youth homicides) during July 1994-June 2018. School-associated homicides consistently represent <2% of all youth homicides in the United States (1,2). The overall 22-year trend for single-victim homicide rates did not change significantly. However, multiple-victim incidence rates increased significantly from July 2009 to June 2018. Many school-associated homicides, particularly single-victim incidents, are similar to youth homicides unrelated to schools, often involving male, racial/ethnic minority youth victims, and occurring in urban settings. The majority of both single-victim (62.8%) and multiple-victim (95.0%) homicides were from a firearm-related injury. A comprehensive approach to violence prevention is needed to reduce risk for violence on and off school grounds.

Suicide Among Persons With Dementia, Georgia, 2013 to 2016.

INTRODUCTION: Findings from studies examining the relationship between dementia and suicide have been inconsistent. This study examined the characteristics, precipitants, and risk factors for suicide among persons with dementia. METHODS: Data from the Georgia Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementia registry were linked with 2013 to 2016 data from Georgia Vital Records and Georgia Violent Death Reporting System. Descriptive statistics were calculated and logistic regression was used to examine risk factors for suicide. RESULTS: Ninety-one Georgia residents with dementia who died by suicide were identified. Among decedents with known circumstances, common precipitants included depressed mood (38.7%) and physical health problems (72.6%). Suicide rate among persons with dementia was 9.3 per 100 000 person-years overall and substantially higher among those diagnosed in the past 12 months (424.5/100 000 person-years). Being male, dementia diagnosis before age 65, and a recent diagnosis of dementia independently predicted suicide, but not depression or cardiovascular diseases. CONCLUSION: Prevention strategies that identify at-risk individuals, provide support, and ensure continuity of care for persons diagnosed with dementia may help reduce suicide in this population.

Vital Signs: Trends in State Suicide Rates - United States, 1999-2016 and Circumstances Contributing to Suicide - 27 States, 2015.

INTRODUCTION: Suicide rates in the United States have risen nearly 30% since 1999, and mental health conditions are one of several factors contributing to suicide. Examining state-level trends in suicide and the multiple circumstances contributing to it can inform comprehensive state suicide prevention planning. METHODS: Trends in age-adjusted suicide rates among persons aged ≥10 years, by state and sex, across six consecutive 3-year periods (1999-2016), were assessed using data from the National Vital Statistics System for 50 states and the District of Columbia. Data from the National Violent Death Reporting System, covering 27 states in 2015, were used to examine contributing circumstances among decedents with and without known mental health conditions. RESULTS: During 1999-2016, suicide rates increased significantly in 44 states, with 25 states experiencing increases >30%. Rates increased significantly among males and females in 34 and 43 states, respectively. Fifty-four percent of decedents in 27 states in 2015 did not have a known mental health condition. Among decedents with available information, several circumstances were significantly more likely among those without known mental health conditions than among those with mental health conditions, including relationship problems/loss (45.1% versus 39.6%), life stressors (50.5% versus 47.2%), and recent/impending crises (32.9% versus 26.0%), but these circumstances were common across groups. CONCLUSIONS: Suicide rates increased significantly across most states during 1999-2016. Various circumstances contributed to suicides among persons with and without known mental health conditions. IMPLICATIONS FOR PUBLIC HEALTH PRACTICE: States can use a comprehensive evidence-based public health approach to prevent suicide risk before it occurs, identify and support persons at risk, prevent reattempts, and help friends and family members in the aftermath of a suicide.