Marijuana is the most widely consumed illegal psychoactive substance worldwide. In addition to smoking, it can be consumed in other ways, such as vaporized, or in food, although inhaling it is the most common. It can be smoked alone or mixed with tobacco, and is generally smoked without a filter, so users inhale a larger volume than tobacco smokers. Marijuana smoke contains carcinogens and other chemicals linked to various respiratory diseases.
Now, a new study has found an association between marijuana smoking and chronic airway damage, revealing that marijuana smokers have higher rates of emphysema and respiratory tract disease than people who smoke tobacco. Researchers from the University of Ottawa and Ottawa Hospital examined chest CT scans of 56 marijuana smokers, 57 non-smokers, and 33 tobacco-only individuals, performed between 2005 and 2020.
Giselle Revah, a radiologist and assistant professor at the University of Ottawa School of Medicine, decided to investigate the effect of marijuana on the lungs and its health consequences, since little information is currently available about it because marijuana has become legal. in Canada in 2018, a relatively short time ago, and it is still illegal in many countries.
Smoking marijuana causes inflammation in the airways
The results of the research have been published in Radiology and revealed higher rates of paraseptal emphysema and inflammatory changes in the airways, such as bronchiectasis, thickening of the bronchial wall and mucoid impaction, in marijuana smokers.
Marijuana smokers experienced lung effects that exceed those of smoking tobacco alone, including more cases of upper and lower respiratory tract illnesses
“I can tell if someone is a heavy smoker or a long-time cigarette smoker when I look at a CT scan,” Revah said. With marijuana being the second most inhaled substance after tobacco, I began to wonder: What does marijuana inhalation look like on a CT scan? Would you be able to tell if someone was a marijuana smoker, is it different from cigarette smoke?”
“What is unique about this study is that there has been nothing to compare the imaging findings in tobacco smokers with marijuana smokers before. In fact, there is a lack of imaging research on marijuana, probably because it is still illegal in many parts of the world and in many states in the US, so I think we were the first to do a project like this.” Add.
Although few people participated in the study, its findings suggest that marijuana smokers experienced additional effects on the lungs beyond those of smoking tobacco alone, including more cases of upper and lower respiratory tract disease. “We have identified an association between marijuana use and damage to the small and large airways,” Revah said. “We still need more research before we can affect the policy change. We need larger and more robust prospective studies with more patients to confirm this.”
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