Abstract
As cannabis use increases, physicians need to be familiar with the effects of both cannabis and tobacco on the lungs. However, there have been very few long-term studies of cannabis smoking, mostly due to legality issues and the confounding effects of tobacco. It was previously thought that cannabis and tobacco had similar long-term effects as both cause chronic bronchitis. However, recent large studies have shown that, instead of reducing forced expiratory volume in 1 s and forced vital capacity (FVC), marijuana smoking is associated with increased FVC. The cause of this is unclear, but acute bronchodilator and anti-inflammatory effects of cannabis may be relevant. Bullous lung disease, barotrauma and cannabis smoking have been recognised in case reports and small series. More work is needed to address the effects of cannabis on lung function, imaging and histological changes.
Highlights
As most people are aware, marijuana is the most widely used illicit drug in the world.[1]
Yes Cannabis smoking with or without tobacco smoking was associated with a reduction in TLco (74% predicted ± 20%, Po0.05)
Eighteen out of 19 studies years of cannabis smoking in causing airflow obstruction.[20]
Summary
As most people are aware, marijuana is the most widely used illicit drug in the world.[1] Cannabis is the second most smoked substance, after tobacco. In the past few years, recreational use of cannabis (‘weed’, ‘dope’, ‘grass’, ‘spliff’, ‘toke’, ‘hash’, ‘hemp’, ‘bud’, ‘ganja’ and many others) has had increasing media attention and, with legislation in various countries being relaxed, it appears likely that there will be an increase in exposure generally. We still know very little about the long-term effects of smoking cannabis on the respiratory system and on health in general. The genus includes three different species—Cannabis sativa, Cannabis indica and Cannabis ruderalis. They produce two major active compounds, delta-9-
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