This is what the work presented at the 11th World Stroke Congress, which brings together leading international experts, suggests: cannabis use could well increase the risk of cerebrovascular accident (CVA).
Stroke in the world is
- more than 80 million people currently living with the effects of stroke,
- the second leading cause of death and disability,
- 5.5 million deaths each year, or one death every 6 seconds,
- 13.7 million strokes each year.
- 1 in 4 survivors will suffer another stroke.
The question posed by this broad analysis of US hospital statistics is the possible association or correlation between the occurrence of a stroke and cannabis use. Analysis of 2.3 million hospitalizations of people who used cannabis for recreational purposes. indeed reveals an increase in the incidence of strokes among cannabis users, here over the period 2010 to 2014, a period during which the overall prevalence of strokes remained stable. Specifically, the analysis finds:
- of the 2.3 million participants, 32,231, or 1.4%, had a stroke, including 19,452 an acute ischemic stroke;
- over the 5 years of the study, the rate of all types of stroke among cannabis users fell from 1.3% to 1.5%;
- the ischemic stroke rate fell from 0.7% to 0.9%;
- but during the same period, the prevalence of stroke is stable.
The researchers conclude that these increasing trends in stroke among cannabis users warrant further prospective studies. The researchers finally confirm the possible link between cannabis and the risk of stroke " due to the cerebrovascular effects of cannabinoids ".
