Abstract Background:The dual diagnosis of cannabis use disorder (CUD) and severe mental disorder (SMD) results in clinically complex individuals. Cannabis use is known to have negative consequences on psychiatric symptoms, medication compliance, and disease prognosis. Moreover, the effectiveness of currently available psychotherapeutic treatments is limited in this population. In this context, our research team developed avatar intervention, an approach using virtual reality as a therapeutic tool to treat CUD in individuals with SMD. Objective:This pilot clinical trial aimed to evaluate, until the 1-year follow-up, the efficacy of avatar intervention for CUD among 32 participants with a dual diagnosis of SMD and CUD. Methods:Over the...

Please use this link to access this publication. ABSTRACT Objective: Social environment is a key determinant of substance use, but cannabis-related social network analysis is not common, in part because of the assessment burden of comprehensive egocentric social network analysis. Method: The current pre-registered secondary analysis assessed the psychometric properties (i.e., convergent, criterion-related, incremental validity) of the Brief Cannabis Social Density Assessment (B-CaSDA) in a cross-sectional sample of adults who use cannabis (N = 310) using a survey-based design. The B-CaSDA assesses the quantity and frequency of cannabis use for the respondent's four closest (nonparent) relationships. Results: Ego cannabis use severity was elevated for each...

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Abstract Thromboangiitis obliterans (TAO) is an inflammatory vasculopathy that often presents in young men with substantial tobacco use. Cannabis arteritis is the cannabis-associated counterpart, but there remains controversy over its classification due to overwhelming concurrent tobacco use. A 31-year-old man developed lifestyle-limiting claudication that coincided with vaping high-potency tetrahydrocannabinol. Notably, his tobacco exposure was limited to a remote history of <1 pack-year. His claudication considerably improved after 4 weeks of cannabis cessation. This case demonstrates a rare instance of cannabis arteritis without concurrent tobacco use, suggesting cannabis may act as an independent causative agent of a distinct thromboangiitis obliterans-like arteritis.

Abstract Cannabis use is increasingly prevalent among individuals with epilepsy, yet its impact on seizure control remains poorly understood. While cannabidiol (CBD) has demonstrated antiseizure properties and gained FDA approval for specific epileptic syndromes, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the primary psychoactive compound in cannabis, may alter neuronal excitability and potentially exacerbate seizure activity. We present two illustrative case reports of male patients with focal epilepsy and chronic cannabis use who underwent treatment with antiseizure medications and responsive neurostimulation (RNS). In both cases, cannabis use was temporally associated with breakthrough seizures and poor seizure control. These cases highlight the complex and multifactorial relationship between cannabis use and seizure outcomes,...

Abstract Background: Cannabis is one of the world’s most commonly used substances; however, many questions remain unanswered as to how cannabis impacts the body. Recently, there has been a resurgence of research into the effects of plant-derived cannabinoids on mitochondrial health. In particular, a number of studies implicate mitochondrial—Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ9-THC) interactions with altered memory, metabolism, and catalepsy in mice. Although the research in this field is expanding rapidly, there is little known about the effects of cannabis on mitochondria health in human subjects either in acute or chronic term use. Methods: Blood samples were obtained from a double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group randomized clinical trial in...

ABSTRACT Little is known about the neurometabolic effects of cannabis use. Using meta-analytic modeling of proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1H-MRS) studies, this study aimed to assess the differences in brain metabolite levels associated with cannabis use (PROSPERO: CRD42020209890) to inform treatment development for cannabis use disorder (CUD). Hedge's g with random-effects modeling was used, and heterogeneity and publication bias indices were assessed. A complete literature search was conducted, and 15 studies met the inclusion criteria (e.g., 1H-MRS, cannabis group compared to a control group, brain region-specific results, necessary data to complete modeling). There were 29 models across gray matter regions in the brain. All models had...

Abstract Cannabis use is widespread and associated with worsened prognosis for young adults with first-episode psychosis (FEP). Few cannabis harm reduction interventions have been evaluated for this population, despite potential to improve outcomes in those not ready for cannabis abstinence/reduction-focused interventions. This study aimed to determine a) the acceptability of a digital harm reduction intervention, the Cannabis Harm-reducing App to Manage Practices Safely (CHAMPS) and b) the feasibility of conducting a trial comparing FEP-specialized early intervention services (EIS)+CHAMPS versus EIS-only with this population. We conducted a multi-site pilot randomized controlled trial comparing both arms in 101 young adults (18 - 35 years old) with...

Abstract Objective: People with a psychotic disorder are more likely to experience pain and interference from pain in their daily lives. There is also a high prevalence of cannabis use among people with psychotic disorders, which is known to be effective in pain management. This study investigates whether pain is a predictor of cannabis use in people with psychosis. Since sedating antipsychotics may also suppress pain, this is included as a covariate. Methods: This sample included 108 Dutch people with a psychotic disorder, participating in the VAT observational cohort study. Cross-sectional regression analyses were performed with cannabis use (yes/no and units per week) as outcomes, and pain...