TY - JOUR
T1 - Association of cannabis potency with mental ill health and addiction: a systematic review
AU - Petrilli, Kat
AU - Ofori, Shelan
AU - Hines, Lindsey
AU - Taylor, Gemma
AU - Adams, Sally
AU - Freeman, Tom P.
N1 - Funding Information:
GT reports previous funding from Pfizer (GRANT scheme) and owns a scientific consulting company doing work unrelated to this project. KP, SO, LH, SA, and TPF declare no competing interests.
PY - 2022/9/30
Y1 - 2022/9/30
N2 - Cannabis potency, defined as the concentration of Δ
9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), has increased internationally, which could increase the risk of adverse health outcomes for cannabis users. We present, to our knowledge, the first systematic review of the association of cannabis potency with mental health and addiction (PROSPERO, CRD42021226447). We searched Embase, PsycINFO, and MEDLINE (from database inception to Jan 14, 2021). Included studies were observational studies of human participants comparing the association of high-potency cannabis (products with a higher concentration of THC) and low-potency cannabis (products with a lower concentration of THC), as defined by the studies included, with depression, anxiety, psychosis, or cannabis use disorder (CUD). Of 4171 articles screened, 20 met the eligibility criteria: eight studies focused on psychosis, eight on anxiety, seven on depression, and six on CUD. Overall, use of higher potency cannabis, relative to lower potency cannabis, was associated with an increased risk of psychosis and CUD. Evidence varied for depression and anxiety. The association of cannabis potency with CUD and psychosis highlights its relevance in health-care settings, and for public health guidelines and policies on cannabis sales. Standardisation of exposure measures and longitudinal designs are needed to strengthen the evidence of this association.
AB - Cannabis potency, defined as the concentration of Δ
9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), has increased internationally, which could increase the risk of adverse health outcomes for cannabis users. We present, to our knowledge, the first systematic review of the association of cannabis potency with mental health and addiction (PROSPERO, CRD42021226447). We searched Embase, PsycINFO, and MEDLINE (from database inception to Jan 14, 2021). Included studies were observational studies of human participants comparing the association of high-potency cannabis (products with a higher concentration of THC) and low-potency cannabis (products with a lower concentration of THC), as defined by the studies included, with depression, anxiety, psychosis, or cannabis use disorder (CUD). Of 4171 articles screened, 20 met the eligibility criteria: eight studies focused on psychosis, eight on anxiety, seven on depression, and six on CUD. Overall, use of higher potency cannabis, relative to lower potency cannabis, was associated with an increased risk of psychosis and CUD. Evidence varied for depression and anxiety. The association of cannabis potency with CUD and psychosis highlights its relevance in health-care settings, and for public health guidelines and policies on cannabis sales. Standardisation of exposure measures and longitudinal designs are needed to strengthen the evidence of this association.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85135886512&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/S2215-0366(22)00161-4
DO - 10.1016/S2215-0366(22)00161-4
M3 - Review article
SN - 2215-0366
VL - 9
SP - 736
EP - 750
JO - The Lancet Psychiatry
JF - The Lancet Psychiatry
IS - 9
ER -
