Researchers Identify Link Of Cannabis Usage And Detrimental Structural Changes To The Heart
Source: Thailand Medical News Dec 22, 2019 4 years, 10 months, 4 weeks, 2 days, 6 hours, 6 minutes ago
Medical researchers identify possible link between
cannabis use and detrimental structural changes to
heart. Regular
cannabis use could affect the structure and function of the
heart, research led by a team at Queen Mary University of London suggests.
By analyzing MRI images from the UK Biobank population study, the team identified an association between regular
cannabis use and an enlarged left ventricle the
heart's main pumping chamber together with early signs of impairment of
heart function.
The study results are published today in
JACC Cardiovascular Imaging.
Dr. Mohammed Khanji, Senior Clinical Lecturer at Queen Mary,and lead author told
Thailand Medical News, "Our findings are not conclusive but the research took place against a backdrop of decriminalisation and legalisation of recreational
cannabis use in many countries. We urgently need systematic research to identify the long-term implications of regular consumption of
cannabis on the
heart and blood vessels. This would allow health professionals and policymakers to improve advice to patients and the wider public."
The research study analyzed cardiac scans for 3,407 individuals with an average age of 62 who did not have cardiovascular disease. Most (3,255) rarely or never used
cannabis, 105 had used it regularly but more than five years before they were interviewed and 47 were current regular users.
The study showed that the latter group were more likely to have larger left ventricles and show early signs of impaired
heart function, measured by how the heart muscle fibres deform during contraction. However, there appeared to be no difference between the three groups in the overall mass of the left ventricle or the amount of blood ejected with each heartbeat. No changes were identified in the size and function of the other three chambers of the
heart.
The study analysis also found that people who had used
cannabis regularly but given up had similar
heart size and function to those who had rarely or never taken the drug.
Though the study took account of factors such as age, diabetes, blood pressure, smoking and alcohol consumption, Dr. Khanji acknowledged it did have limitations. These included the over-representation of Caucasian participants (96%), the relatively low number of regular
cannabis users, the reliance on self-reported usage of a drug that remains illegal in the UK and the possible impact of unmeasured confounding factors.
Dr. Khanji, who is also a consultant cardiologist at Newham University Hospital and Barts Heart Centre, part of Barts Health NHS Trust, said: "We believe this is the first study to systematically report changes in
heart structure and function associated with recreational
cannabis using cardiac MRI, which is a very sensitive imaging tool and the current reference standard for
assessing
cardiac chambers.”
He stressed, “The World Health Organisation has warned about the potential harmful health effects of non-medical
cannabis use and called for more research specifically around the cardiac impact."
Reference : Association between recreational cannabis use and cardiac structure and function, Khanji, M et al JACC Cardiovascular Imaging , DOI: 10.1016/j.jcmg.2019.10.012
