This Painful Syndrome Is Sending Cannabis Users to the ER Are You at Risk? School of Medicine and Health Sciences

Armentano alleged CHS and “scromiting” are the latest anti-marijuana talking point. The term has grown in popularity as more states legalize medical and recreational marijuana. Awareness of this condition can prevent unnecessary investigations, save costs, and reduce hospital admissions in selected patients. The application of capsaicin what is alcoholism cream to the abdomen may provide some symptomatic relief for patients.

How can I prevent cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome?

There is a clear need for more robust studies to assess the prevalence, demographics, and long-term outcomes of CHS in a variety of populations. This includes not only observational studies but also randomized controlled trials to assess potential treatment options for CHS. Given the rise of CHS cases in regions with legalized cannabis markets, public health agencies should prioritize research funding to fill these gaps and inform future policy. While several treatments provide symptom relief, it is important to be cautious with certain medications. Narcotic pain medications, for instance, should generally be avoided in CHS patients. Opioids may exacerbate CHS symptoms due to their association with bowel dysfunction, and they could also potentially lead to opioid dependence in chronic users 47.

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When you do this, your symptoms usually start to go away in few days to a few months. Over time, the symptoms will go away completely unless you start to Sober living home use again. During the COVID-19 pandemic from 2020 to 2021, public health scientists James Swartz and Dana Franceschini found that CHS prevalence in US emergency departments increased significantly. In older patients, especially those with hypertension, cardiovascular illnesses such as aortic pathology and atypical coronary artery syndromes may present as vague abdominal pain, nausea, and vomiting. If you have cannabis use disorder and need help quitting, professional treatment is available.

• Preventing dehydration and stopping nausea and vomiting are the treatment goals during the hyperemesis stage of the condition.
• People who have CHS experience repeated and severe bouts of nausea, vomiting, dehydration and stomach pain.
• This has increased both the number of people using the drug and the “high” in the available weed.
• Most individuals start to see significant improvement within one to two weeks, but full resolution of all lingering symptoms can take anywhere from a few weeks to several months.

Rather, it could stem from increased recognition of CHS and a publication bias for a newly recognized syndrome. Whether or not that increase is due to more people using cannabis frequently or due to improved awareness is unknown. The first case in the US was only reported in 2009, and until recently, CHS did not even have a national diagnostic code, making it a challenge to track. Probably, a crucial factor in the genesis of CHS is the composition of cannabis.

• Speak with a doctor or healthcare professional if you or someone you know has symptoms of CHS.
• CHS does not mean that every cannabis user is in danger or that all medicinal uses are invalid.
• For years, CHS was described under vague labels such as “cyclical vomiting” or “vomiting, unspecified,” making it hard to track and easy to overlook.
• Capsaicin, applied to the abdomen, has shown success in resolving symptoms in all 15 CHS patients studied in one case report and two case series 38-40.
• There was a history of similar episodes, the most recent being a year ago, when extensive tests were done with no specific positive findings.

Cannabinoid Hyperemesis Syndrome Diagnosis

Although this information comes from case reports, doctors can use these criteria to diagnose the condition more quickly. Doctors have also noticed that people in the hyperemesis stage take frequent showers and baths, which seem to relieve nausea. People in the hyperemesis stage will experience intense and persistent nausea and vomiting. CB1 receptors are mostly present in the brain, but they also occur in other organs.

In CHS, receptors that bind to the different components of marijuana can become altered. In this article, we describe CHS and discuss the causes, symptoms, diagnosis, and treatment of the condition. As CHS is a newly described condition, many doctors may find it challenging to diagnose and treat.

In nearly all cases there is a delay of several years in the onset of symptoms preceded by chronic marijuana abuse 6. In one study the average duration of cannabis use prior to onset of recurrent vomiting was 16.3 ± 3.4 years 62. There are at least four reported cases where the time lag was equal to or less than three years 54,59,60.

Publication types

To better understand the condition, Meltzer and his team surveyed 1,052 people who reported experiencing CHS. The study gathered data on their cannabis use patterns, including how often they consumed it, how long they had been using, the age they started, and whether they required emergency or hospital care. Contact your health care provider if you suspect you might have CHS or for information on treatment options for cannabis use disorder. Cannabinoids are found in the cannabis plant and bind to cannabinoid receptors found in our brains, gastrointestinal tracts and immune cells. Cannabinoids include tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), cannabidiol (CBD) and cannabigerol (CBG). It is important for people with CHS to stop using marijuana because this will resolve their nausea and vomiting.

Need help with medications?

If the endocannabinoid system gets disrupted by excessive use of cannabinoids, the stimulation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and the sympathetic nervous system may occur. Stress is regulated and controlled partially by the endocannabinoid system, and the HPA axis is the main neuroendocrine system activated by the stress response and therefore cannabinoids 30. The HPA axis and sympathetic nervous system must balance their roles to mediate the stress. The response to stress is important in survival, but long-term stress can have negative effects on one’s health 31.

Theara Coleman has worked as a staff writer at The Week since September 2022. She frequently writes about technology, education, literature and general news. She was previously a contributing writer and assistant editor at Honeysuckle Magazine, where she covered racial politics and cannabis industry news. The only consistently effective long-term “cure” is stopping cannabis use. —all while the real culprit (chronic high-dose cannabis) goes unaddressed. For years, CHS was described under vague labels such as “cyclical vomiting” or “vomiting, unspecified,” making it hard to track and easy to overlook.

They’ll also examine your abdomen and may order tests to rule out other causes of vomiting. Since 2004, doctors have identified key symptoms and characteristics of the condition that can help speed up diagnosis. However, researchers have yet to determine the cause of CHS since it does not affect all users of marijuana. These supportive treatments can help people during the hyperemesis stage of the condition, but recovery depends on the person stopping their use of marijuana. One possible treatment option involves the use of benzodiazepines, such as lorazepam, to control nausea and vomiting. Benzodiazepines are controlled substances that people must use with caution, particularly those with a history of drug use.

Substances

We fix this by giving the water back through the veins and giving drugs to stop the sick feeling and lower the acid in the stomach. Patients with CVS also have times where they are feeling sick to the stomach and can also throw up for between 12 hours to about a week. This can happen when you are stressed, excited, have an infection or when women have their period.