Dec 1, 2025 07:42 PM
https://gizmodo.com/cannabis-induced-scr...2000691530
INTRO: As much fun and helpful as cannabis can be, every drug has its potential tradeoffs. Case in point, a study out this week finds that more Americans are coming down with a stomach-churning side effect of long-term use.
Researchers at the University of Illinois Chicago examined emergency department visits from across the country. They found evidence that ER visits for cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome (CHS)-- a condition characterized by constant, painful bouts of vomiting -- have noticeably risen in the last several years, especially among younger adults. The researchers say that more doctors need to be aware of this debilitating, but ultimately treatable, health problem.
“Cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome is real, and it’s becoming a more routine part of emergency medicine in the U.S.,” lead author James Swartz, a professor at UIC’s Jane Addams College of Social Work, told Gizmodo.
People with CHS will experience cyclical periods of intense cramps, nausea, and vomiting. An acute episode can last one to two days, and the experience is often so intolerable that people will scream out in pain as they’re vomiting—a phenomenon that’s been given the charming nickname “scromiting.”
CHS typically happens in people who have been using cannabis chronically for at least several years. Scientists aren’t sure why it develops, but it might be caused by the overstimulation of native cannabinoid receptors in the gastrointestinal tract. It’s thought to be a rare complication, but recent research has suggested that cases of CHS have been increasing in the U.S. and other places where cannabis legalization has expanded.
In this latest study, the researchers analyzed data from a nationwide sample of ER visits in the U.S. between 2016 and 2022. Until recently, doctors couldn’t diagnose CHS as a distinct medical condition for record-keeping and insurance purposes. So the researchers instead looked for diagnoses related to cyclical vomiting syndrome (severe, sudden vomiting that can’t be explained by other known causes) and cannabis use; cases where both diagnoses were present were used as a proxy for CHS.
During the study period, roughly 100,000 cases of suspected CHS were documented. Prior to the covid-19 pandemic, they found, annual rates of CHS were steady. Starting in 2020, however, suspected cases of CHS seen in the ER surged. And though cases did decline in 2022, they were still above the pre-pandemic baseline. Importantly, cases of cannabis-related health problems in general also rose during that same period, while cases of cyclical vomiting syndrome without any cannabis link did not, further suggesting a real rise in CHS.
The team’s findings were published Monday in JAMA Network Open... (MORE - details)
INTRO: As much fun and helpful as cannabis can be, every drug has its potential tradeoffs. Case in point, a study out this week finds that more Americans are coming down with a stomach-churning side effect of long-term use.
Researchers at the University of Illinois Chicago examined emergency department visits from across the country. They found evidence that ER visits for cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome (CHS)-- a condition characterized by constant, painful bouts of vomiting -- have noticeably risen in the last several years, especially among younger adults. The researchers say that more doctors need to be aware of this debilitating, but ultimately treatable, health problem.
“Cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome is real, and it’s becoming a more routine part of emergency medicine in the U.S.,” lead author James Swartz, a professor at UIC’s Jane Addams College of Social Work, told Gizmodo.
People with CHS will experience cyclical periods of intense cramps, nausea, and vomiting. An acute episode can last one to two days, and the experience is often so intolerable that people will scream out in pain as they’re vomiting—a phenomenon that’s been given the charming nickname “scromiting.”
CHS typically happens in people who have been using cannabis chronically for at least several years. Scientists aren’t sure why it develops, but it might be caused by the overstimulation of native cannabinoid receptors in the gastrointestinal tract. It’s thought to be a rare complication, but recent research has suggested that cases of CHS have been increasing in the U.S. and other places where cannabis legalization has expanded.
In this latest study, the researchers analyzed data from a nationwide sample of ER visits in the U.S. between 2016 and 2022. Until recently, doctors couldn’t diagnose CHS as a distinct medical condition for record-keeping and insurance purposes. So the researchers instead looked for diagnoses related to cyclical vomiting syndrome (severe, sudden vomiting that can’t be explained by other known causes) and cannabis use; cases where both diagnoses were present were used as a proxy for CHS.
During the study period, roughly 100,000 cases of suspected CHS were documented. Prior to the covid-19 pandemic, they found, annual rates of CHS were steady. Starting in 2020, however, suspected cases of CHS seen in the ER surged. And though cases did decline in 2022, they were still above the pre-pandemic baseline. Importantly, cases of cannabis-related health problems in general also rose during that same period, while cases of cyclical vomiting syndrome without any cannabis link did not, further suggesting a real rise in CHS.
The team’s findings were published Monday in JAMA Network Open... (MORE - details)