Researchers have found clear associations between marijuana use in young males and cyclic vomiting syndrome (CVS), where patients experience episodes of vomiting separated by symptom free intervals.
The study, published in the January issue of Neurogastroenterology and Motility , looked at 226 patients seen at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, New York, USA, over a 13-year period.
These were broken into three groups. Eighty-two patients with CVS were randomly matched with 82 patients with Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) based on age, gender and geographic referral region. Researchers also examined the records of 62 patients with functional vomiting (FV), recurrent vomiting that cannot be attributed to a specific physical or psychiatric cause.
"Our study showed that CVS and FV had very similar clinical features, apart from marijuana use" says Dr G Richard Locke III from the Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology at the Clinic.
Key findings of the study included:
The research team also looked at gastrointestinal symptoms and migraine as these have previously been associated with CVS. They found that
"Our study confirms that cyclic vomiting syndrome occurs most often in young males and is significantly associated with marijuana use, unlike functional vomiting" says Dr Locke. "The current treatment options for this condition remain challenging and are limited by the lack of randomised controlled trials. Further research is clearly needed."
Notes to editors
Neurogastroenterology & Motility