What We're Reading: Chemotherapy Shortage Struggles; Suicide All-Time High; Acid Reflux Drug, Dementia Link

Hospitals Struggling With Drug Shortages

A report from NBC News shows that about 1 in 3 hospitals in the United States say they've skipped, delayed, or prescribed less medications to patients than needed in order to cope with chemotherapy drug shortages. Almost every hospital reported that patient care was affected in some way from the shortages and one-third of respondents said drug shortages were "critically impactful." The data stem from a survey of over 1100 hospitals and health-system pharamcists in the United States from June 23, 2023, to July 14, 2023. In addition to chemotherapy drugs, hospitals are struggling to obtain corticosteroids, oral liquids such as ibuprofen and amoxicillin, "crash cart" drugs for medical emergencies, medications for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, and injectable opioids.

US Suicide Rate Hits All-Time High

In 2022, about 49,500 people succumbed to suidice in the United States, the highest number ever recorded, according to a report from The Associated Press. The data come from the CDC and suggest that suicides are more common in the United Staes than at any time since World War II (n = 48,300 in 1941). Experts cautioned that recent increases might be driven by a range of factors, including higher rates of depression, mental health service inaccessibility, and the growing availability of guns. Suicide attempts involving guns result in death far more often than other means, yet gun sales are on the rise. The suicide rate has been steadily rising since the early 2000s, falling in 2019 and 2020 before rising by 4% in 2021 and 3% in 2022.

Acid Reflux Drug Linked With Dementia

Proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) used to treat heartburn and acid reflux have been linked to a greater risk of dementia, kidney failure, stroke, and early death from any cause, as reported by CNN Health. New data show that people 45 years and older who took PPIs daily for over 4 yeras had a 33% higher risk of developing dementia than people who never took the drugs. Dementia is an open-ended term for memory loss and cognitive decline caused by damage to brain cells. PPIs reduce stomach acid by targeting acid-producing enzymes in the stomach lining and are widely available as over-the counter medications. Experts said that people who take these drugs occationally should not be worried and that the data do not prove that they can cause dementia; it only shows an association and more research is needed to confirm the findings.