CNN/WKRC – A rare but increasingly reported condition linked to frequent marijuana use is drawing new attention.
Social media users have dubbed it “scromiting,” a combination of screaming and vomiting, though doctors refer to it as Cannabis Hyperemesis Syndrome, or CHS.
Emergency rooms are seeing more chronic marijuana users—often teenagers—arrive with symptoms that include severe stomach pain, nausea and vomiting that can last for hours … read more [free to read]
“Many marijuana users develop cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome (CHS) after years of smoking marijuana … the nausea and pain are too severe to ignore. Patients can also become dehydrated, which can lead to kidney damage.” – REHABS.COM
Emergent Medical Illnesses Related to Cannabis Use
Karen Randall, Kathleen Hayward, National Library of Medicine
Case reports
“He attacked three health care workers … “
16 y/o male presents to the ED after having had a psychotic break while on vacation in a nearby state. Family drove him home, fearing that they could not put him safely on a plane. While in the ED, the patient was behaviorally controlled. There is no family history of psychosis, schizophrenia, or other mental illness.
The patient himself has no history of mental illness. He was evaluated and admitted to the off-site adolescent unit. While there, he had another psychotic episode. He attacked three health care workers, stabbing a security officer in the process. He was tased three times without behavior control.
He was ultimately chemically sedated. Repeated drug screens were positive for cannabis only. He was treated and released and within two weeks, had another psychotic episode, and attacked family members with enough force to cause subdural hematomas in one.
“She acutely started yelling, was actively hallucinating, and was combative … “
72 y/o female presents to the ED with acute psychosis, yelling, and hallucinating. The patient was visiting from out of state and was staying with her grandson, a bud tender (working in the marijuana industry).
She started with edibles. Initially, she had no response to a single serve edible, so continued to eat several. She acutely started yelling, was actively hallucinating, and was combative. She was brought to the ED and she was sedated with lorazepam. She was observed for several hours prior to returning to baseline.
There is a clear association of acute psychosis with cannabis use. A large systematic review shows that there is an increased risk of psychosis, with a dose-dependent response effect and greater in those who use more frequently.
A 15-year longitudinal study done in Sweden shows that there is an increase in relative risk of developing schizophrenia among high cannabis users compared to those who do not use.2 The ED has been seeing more episodes of acute psychosis in the ED where cannabis is the substance being abused.
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