Recreational marijuana use is linked to an increase in stroke prevalence in the U.S. population, according to a study presented this week at the 11th World Stroke Congress in Montreal. Results of the study were released just two days after Canada legalized recreational cannabis nationwide.
The five-year study of hospital statistics in the U.S. found stroke incidence rose steadily among recreational marijuana users while it remained flat in the larger population, according to a release. Researchers studied statistics from 2010 to 2014, examining a cumulative 2.3 million hospitalizations among people who said they used marijuana recreationally.
Of those hospital admissions, 32,231—or 1.4 percent—experienced stroke. Sixty percent of events were acute ischemic strokes (AIS), but the study’s authors said the rate of all stroke types in the population increased from 1.3 percent in 2010 to 1.5 percent in 2014.
Specifically, the rate of AIS rose from 0.7 to 0.9 during the study period. In the same window, researchers said, the prevalence of stroke in the general population remained stable.
According to the release, the observed trends “warrant further prospective studies to evaluate the marijuana-stroke association amidst legalization of recreational use,” especially since not much research exists surrounding marijuana’s impact on the heart.
One study, led by Aditi Kalla, MD, and presented last year at an annual American College of Cardiology symposium, backs the current research. The trial drew data from the National Inpatient Sample and found cannabis users, when compared with non-users, experienced higher rates of stroke, sudden cardiac death, coronary artery disease and heart failure.
That research also linked recreational marijuana use to a host of risk factors associated with CVD, including obesity, high blood pressure, and tobacco and alcohol use. After adjustment for those factors, Kalla et al. said marijuana use remained independently associated with a 26 percent increased risk of experiencing stroke and a 10 percent increased risk of developing heart failure.
The study was conducted at a point when recreational cannabis use was largely illegal in the U.S. Kalla and colleagues said the “growing trend toward legalization of marijuana could mean that patients and doctors will become more comfortable speaking openly about marijuana use, which could allow for better data collection and further insights into the drug’s effects and side effects.”
After graduating from Indiana University-Bloomington with a bachelor’s in journalism, Anicka joined TriMed’s Chicago team in 2017 covering cardiology. Close to her heart is long-form journalism, Pilot G-2 pens, dark chocolate and her dog Harper Lee.