Author Interviews, Cannabis, JAMA / 25.11.2025
JAMA: University of Illinois Study Highlights Recents Trends in Cannabinoid Hyperemesis Syndrome
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[caption id="attachment_71501" align="alignleft" width="157"] Dr. Swartz[/caption]
MedicalResearch.com Interview with:
James A. Swartz, PhD
Professor, Jane Addams College of Social Work
University of Illinois Chicago
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?
Response: For the past 5 1/2 years, my project team has been charged with monitoring the public health effects of adult cannabis use legalization in Illinois. To fulfill that obligation, we have monitored state data and have tried to keep informed about ongoing research on cannabis legalization and public health. Cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome (CHS) rose to the surface of this continual monitoring through a growing number of publications indicating the prevalence of this condition was on the rise and clinical case reports. As context, for any readers unfamiliar with the clinical syndrome, CHS is a paradoxical reaction to long-term, heavy cannabis use. Instead of relieving nausea, cannabis in some people appears to trigger cycles of severe nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain. Patients often present repeatedly to emergency departments, undergo extensive workups, and only much later does someone connect the dots and consider CHS. Resource use is substantial. CHS visits often involve repeat ED presentations, imaging, laboratory testing, and sometimes hospital admission. Even though CHS is rarely life-threatening, it is not a trivial condition from either the patient’s or the system’s perspective.
Dr. Swartz[/caption]
MedicalResearch.com Interview with:
James A. Swartz, PhD
Professor, Jane Addams College of Social Work
University of Illinois Chicago
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?
Response: For the past 5 1/2 years, my project team has been charged with monitoring the public health effects of adult cannabis use legalization in Illinois. To fulfill that obligation, we have monitored state data and have tried to keep informed about ongoing research on cannabis legalization and public health. Cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome (CHS) rose to the surface of this continual monitoring through a growing number of publications indicating the prevalence of this condition was on the rise and clinical case reports. As context, for any readers unfamiliar with the clinical syndrome, CHS is a paradoxical reaction to long-term, heavy cannabis use. Instead of relieving nausea, cannabis in some people appears to trigger cycles of severe nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain. Patients often present repeatedly to emergency departments, undergo extensive workups, and only much later does someone connect the dots and consider CHS. Resource use is substantial. CHS visits often involve repeat ED presentations, imaging, laboratory testing, and sometimes hospital admission. Even though CHS is rarely life-threatening, it is not a trivial condition from either the patient’s or the system’s perspective.
Most of the existing literature has been case reports, small series, or single-center studies. Those reports clearly show that CHS can be debilitating and is frequently misdiagnosed, but they don’t tell us much about the bigger picture:
- How often Cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome is showing up in emergency departments nationally
- How those rates have changed over time, especially as cannabis policies and patterns of use have shifted
- What the typical patient profile looks like at a population level
Our goal was to step back and use a large national emergency department database to describe CHS at scale in the United States from 2016 through 2022.
Dr. Serena Guo[/caption]
Serena Jingchuan Guo, MD PhD
Assistant Professor
Department of Pharmaceutical Outcomes and Policy
University of Florida College of Pharmacy
[caption id="attachment_71231" align="alignleft" width="125"]
Dr. Hao Dai[/caption]
Hao Dai, PhD
Postdoctoral Fellow
Department of Biostatistics & Health Data Science
Indiana University School of Medicine
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: Obesity and type 2 diabetes are both known to increase the risk of several cancers. Glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RAs) have become very popular for both glycemic control and weight loss, but their long-term effects on cancer risk are still unclear. Using a large real-world dataset, we emulated a target trial comparing more than 43,000 GLP-1RA users to matched non-users.
We found that GLP-1RA use was associated with a significantly lower overall cancer risk.
Dr. Jiyoung Ahn[/caption]
MedicalResearch.com Interview with:
Jiyoung Ahn, PhD
Dr. King[/caption]
Brett King, MD, PHD
Dr. King was named an American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) “Patient Care Hero”
for his work treating patients with severe alopecia areata
Dermatology Physicians of Connecticut
Fairfield, Connecticut
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? Would you briefly explain the condition of Alopecia Areata?
Response: Alopecia Areata (AA), an autoimmune form of hair loss, is common and its treatment has been revolutionized in the past ~3 years with approvals of 3 JAK inhibitors, bariticinib, ritlecitinib and deuruxolitinib. Prior to these approvals, off label treatments included the JAK inhibitors tofacitinib and ruxolitinib.
Dr. Ådén[/caption]
Ulrika Ådén PhD
Professor of Neonatology
Department of Women's and
Children's Health Karolinska
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?
Response: Children born preterm are at higher risk of cognitive impairment during childhood and later in life. However, an important unresolved question is whether these impairments primarily reflect genetic susceptibility or are driven by the biological consequences of being born too early. Cognitive development is known to have a strong heritable component (~70 %), and previous studies have attempted to disentangle genetic and environmental contributions, for example through sibling comparison designs. Although informative, such approaches have inherent limitations.
In this study, we aimed to investigate long-term cognitive outcomes across a range of gestational age groups including very preterm, moderately preterm, late preterm, and early term, compared to children born full term. Importantly, we accounted for genetic influences as well as a range of potential confounding factors, including prenatal risks and child-specific factors. This approach provides a more nuanced understanding of the extent to which cognitive outcomes associated with preterm birth reflect biological versus inherited risk.
Dr. Davis[/caption]
Esa M. Davis, M.D., M.P.H , F.A.A.F.P
Professor of Medicine and Family and Community Medicine
Associate Vice President of Community Health and
Senior Associate Dean of pPopulation Health and Community Medicine
University of Maryland School of Medicine
Dr. Davis joined the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force in January 2021
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Response: Iron is important to overall health, and people need more iron when they are pregnant. This can make pregnant people at increased risk for iron deficiency, which can progress to anemia and cause complications for both moms and their babies. After reviewing the latest available research, the Task Force found that there is not enough evidence on whether pregnant people who do not have signs or symptoms of iron deficiency or anemia should be screened—or take iron supplements—to improve their health or the health of their baby. 
