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Nasal spray may soon do more than fight hay fever. In response to an unprecedented high number of suicides in July, the army moved quickly to respond to the troubling figures, and approved a grant to Indiana University Medicine professor Dr. Michael Kubek to develop and examine the effectiveness of a nasal spray that would eliminate suicidal thoughts.
CNN reports that 38 suicides were confirmed or suspected by the Army in July, which topped the previous monthly high of 33. 120 suicides have been confirmed this year. The spray would administer thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH), which has an anti-depressant effect and has been used in the past to treat psychological disorders. Currently, however, doctors have to inject TRH into patients’ spines to provide treatment. But if the method of delivering this powerful, fast-acting hormone was as easy as a simple nasal spray, it could be much more widely used and help reduce these tragic statistics.
