Cannabis is being legalized in more and more countries, both for medicinal and recreational purposes, and its consumption is also increasing, therefore, studies are being carried out to determine its possible short- and long-term health consequences. In fact, some research has linked the use of this substance with the appearance of mental problems and with alterations in the fertility of men.
Now, new work presented at Digestive Disease Week® (DDW) 2022 has found that patients who had to undergo digestive endoscopy and were cannabis users required higher levels of sedation during the test than those who did not. they consumed “Patients did not have increased awareness or discomfort during the procedures, but they did require more medication,” said Yasmin Nasser, MD, the study’s principal investigator and an assistant professor at the Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases at the Cumming School of Medicine at University of Calgary.
Relationship between cannabis use and sedative use
The researchers conducted a prospective cohort study of 419 adult outpatients who underwent endoscopic testing at three centers in Canada. These patients were given conscious sedation, which leaves the individual relaxed and comfortable, but partially conscious during the procedure. The patients answered two questionnaires, one before the test in which they reported their cannabis use, and another afterwards indicating their level of consciousness and comfort during the test.
These data were analyzed together with other aspects, such as the use of the sedatives midazolam, fentanyl, and diphenhydramine during the procedure. Cannabis use was associated with a greater likelihood of requiring greater total sedation, set at more than 5 mg of midazolam, or more than 100 mcg of fentanyl, or the need for diphenhydramine, during gastroscopy, an endoscopic procedure that begins with the introduction of a tube and a camera through the throat.
However, no association was found between cannabis use and the need for more sedation during colonoscopy. More sedation is usually needed during gastroscopy because inserting the endoscope into the upper GI tract causes irritation and may trigger the gag reflex. Cannabinoid use was not independently associated with fentanyl use or adverse effects, nor was it related to awareness or discomfort during the procedure.
The authors of the study analyzed whether the patients were cannabis users or not, but did not study the time, amount or route of cannabis intake – inhaled, vaporized, ingested or otherwise – before the procedure, and they explained that these factors could be evaluated in a future study.
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