06 Mar Marijuana Use Increases Hospitalizations and Poor Outcomes in Patients With Psychotic Disorders
MedicalResearch.com Interview with:
Dr. Rashmi Patel
Dr. Rashmi Patel MA (Cantab) MA BM BCh PGDip (Oxon) MRCPsych
Clinical Lecturer in General Psychiatry
Kings College London
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study? What are the main findings?
Dr. Patel: Previous studies suggest that cannabis use is associated with an increased risk of developing a psychotic disorder but, until now, little was known about the effects of cannabis on people with an established psychotic disorder. Using novel text mining techniques, we investigated the association of cannabis use with the clinical outcomes of over 2,000 people following their first episode of psychosis.
We found that cannabis use was associated with significantly poorer clinical outcomes including a 50% increased frequency of hospital admission and 35 additional days spent in hospital in the 5 years after first receiving treatment. We also found that the poor outcomes associated with cannabis use may be linked to antipsychotic treatment failure.
MedicalResearch.com: What should clinicians and patients take away from your report?
Dr. Patel: The findings of this study are important as they highlight a need for clinicians to help reduce cannabis use among people with psychotic disorders and to reduce the harms of cannabis in this group of patients.
MedicalResearch.com: What recommendations do you have for future research as a result of this study?
Dr. Patel: Our study highlights a clear link between cannabis use and poor clinical outcomes in people with established psychotic disorders. However, further research is needed to determine the exact mechanisms by which cannabis use results in poorer outcomes, as well as to develop better treatment strategies for people with psychotic disorders who use cannabis.
MedicalResearch.com: Thank you for your contribution to the MedicalResearch.com community.
Citation:
Rashmi Patel, Robin Wilson, Richard Jackson, Michael Ball, Hitesh Shetty, Matthew Broadbent, Robert Stewart, Philip McGuire, Sagnik Bhattacharyya. Association of cannabis use with hospital admission and antipsychotic treatment failure in first episode psychosis: an observational study. BMJ Open, 2016; 6 (3): e009888 DOI:10.1136/bmjopen-2015-009888
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More Medical Research Interviews on MedicalResearch.com
Dr. Rashmi Pate (2016). Marijuana Use Increases Hospitalizations and Poor Outcomes in Patients With Psychotic Disorders
Last Updated on March 6, 2016 by Marie Benz MD FAAD