Living with COVID-19: Subjective Well-Being in the Second Phase of the Pandemic

Journal of Youth and Adolescence - While there is ample evidence of the decline in mental health among youth during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, less is known about the determinants of...     

Comments on “Are the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) justified?”

In “Are the Government-Sponsored Enterprises (GSEs) Justified?” the authors conclude that the benefits delivered by the GSEs (as structured prior to conservatorship) are minimal and do not exceed their costs. While many of the arguments made in the article have merit and raise serious questions about the structure of the GSEs prior to 2008, the article overlooks several important benefits and costs. More significantly, no one is arguing for a return of the GSEs as they were structured prior to conservatorship. Rather than debate the merits of a model that has already been rejected by policymakers, we argue that the far more important question is what the housing finance market should look like in the future.     

Carbon monoxide poisoning from indoor barbecues--incidents reported to the German-speaking Poison Information Centers and the German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) in Berlin

From 2008 to the end of 2009 the Joint Poison Information Center (PIC) in Erfurt observed 7 incidents involving 17 persons (1 fatality) with signs of carbon monoxide poisoning from indoor barbecues (COFIB). To find out whether COFIB is a regional or a general phenomenon in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, all information about COFIBs recorded by the 11 German-speaking Poison Information Centers and the BfR Berlin were retrospectively analyzed for the period 2000 to 2009. In all, 60 COFIBs (accidental: 90.0 %, suicidal: 8.3%, reason unknown: 1.7%) involving 146 individuals were reported. The number of incidents increased from one case with 2 persons in 2000 to 18 cases involving 34 persons in 2009. The 146 victims (female 26.7%, male 27.4%, gender unknown 45.9%; adults 58.2%, children 24.7%, age unknown 17.1%) lived in 15 of the 16 federal states of Germany and in Switzerland. The highest number of victims was found in Bavaria (23), Brandenburg (18), and Baden-Wuerttemberg (18). The symptoms according to the Poisoning Severity Score were none to mild in 60.3%, moderate in 13.7%, severe in 11.6%, fatal in 6.9% and unratable in 7.5%. No clear correlation was found between the carboxyhemoglobin concentration and the severity of the symptoms. As a rising number of COFIBs often involving several individuals was observed from 2000 to 2009, the general public was informed about the risks of indoor barbecues.     

Evaluation of the role of abstinence in heroin overdose deaths using segmental hair analysis

In the body heroin is rapidly metabolized to 6-acetylmorphine and morphine. Victims of lethal heroin overdose often present with fairly low blood concentrations of morphine. Reduced tolerance due to abstinence has been proposed to account for this finding. The aim of the present study was to examine the role of abstinence in drug-related deaths by comparing recent and past exposure to opioids using segmental hair analysis with the postmortem blood morphine concentrations in deceased heroin users. The study included 60 deceased drug addicts in the Stockholm area, Sweden. In 32 cases, death was not related to heroin intake. In 18 of the 28 heroin fatalities, opioids were absent in the most recent hair segment, suggesting a reduced tolerance to opioids. However, the blood morphine levels were similar to those found in the 10 subjects that showed continuous opioid use. Hair and blood analysis disclosed an extensive use of additional drugs that directly or indirectly may influence the opioid system. The results suggest that abstinence is not a critical factor for heroin overdose death. Obviously tolerant subjects die after intake of similar doses. Other factors, particularly polydrug use, seem to be more causally important for these deaths.     

Standardized assessment of substance-related, other psychiatric, and comorbid disorders among probationers

This study examined the prevalence of alcohol- and substance-related disorders in a random sample of 627 adult probationers in Illinois. The investigation also explored the prevalence of major psychiatric disorders and their co-occurrences with alcohol and substance use disorders. To detect the presence of psychiatric disorders, researchers employed standardized assessment tools based on Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders criteria. Overall, results showed that probationers had significantly higher rates of psychiatric disorders, substance use disorders, and co-occurring disorders compared with persons in the general population. In light of these findings, probation administrators are urged to invest more resources in treating drug use, mental illness, and codisorders, the latter of which is associated with a higher risk of violent behaviors.     

Meckel's diverticulum and intestinal obstruction--report of a fatal case

Meckel's diverticulum is an uncommon cause of intestinal obstruction in adult life. Rarely Meckel's diverticulum is complicated by a mesodiverticular band, which is believed to be a remnant of a vitelline artery. When this abnormality occurs it is associated with high mortality. We present a case of a 48-year-old man with increasing abdominal pain and vomiting for 3 days. Meckel's diverticulum was not taken into diagnostic consideration, and the man died. Autopsy revealed a Meckel's diverticulum with a mesodiverticular band and intestinal obstruction. Histological examination of cross sections of the mesodiverticular band showed the presence of an artery. Because of the high mortality of this rare anatomic anomaly in adults, we find the case of interest.     

Cross-sectoral strategies in global sustainability governance: towards a nexus approach

The recent shift from the Millennium Development Goals to the much broader Sustainable Development Goals has given further impetus to the debate on the nexus between the multiple sectors of policy-making that the Goals are to cover. The key message in this debate is that different domains—for instance, water, energy and food—are interconnected and can thus not be effectively resolved unless they are addressed as being fully interrelated and interdependent. Yet while this overall narrative is forcefully supported in the new UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals that are the main part of this agenda, many Goals still remain sectoral in their basic outlook. This now requires, we argue, a new focus in both policy and research on the nexus between different Sustainable Development Goals, especially with a view to reforms in the overall institutional setting that is required to sufficiently support such a nexus approach. This article thus examines the nexus approach in the context of the Sustainable Development Goals and identifies multiple avenues for its institutionalisation in global governance.