At low doses, the effect of cannabis on your brain can have an antiemetic effect that suppresses nausea and vomiting. However, with repeated use in some people, it can have the opposite effect on the digestive tract. This results in the persistent vomiting and nausea characteristic of CHS. To help you transition to the recovery phase, you can try a few home remedies such as regular hot baths. But too many of them may increase your risk for dehydration due to sweating. Because CHS is a fairly new medical condition, not all doctors know about it.
Understanding Cannabis Hyperemesis Syndrome
Benzodiazepines are controlled substances that people must use with caution, particularly those with a history of drug use. Doctors also noticed that individuals with CHS would take frequent hot showers and baths. Cannabinoids are compounds in the Cannabis sativa plant that bind to cannabinoid receptors in your brain, spinal cord, gastrointestinal tract and other body tissues. Examples of cannabinoids include tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD).
What Is Cannabinoid Hyperemesis Syndrome?
- In CHS, receptors that bind to the different components of marijuana can become altered.
- As CHS is a new diagnosis, the manufacturers of these drugs did not design them for treating CHS, but a doctor may opt to prescribe them for this use.
- Some receptors may become more active, while others can shut down.
- People with CHS also tend to have a strong urge to take very hot showers or baths.
It’s thought that genetics may play a role because only a small number of people who regularly use cannabis develop CHS. Regular, long-term cannabis use is the only known cause of CHS. Some may be finding that there can be very real — and serious — what is chs complications that come with cannabis use. As more states legalize cannabis, more people are learning whether cannabis is right for them.
How Soon After CHS Will I Feel Better?
The disorder confuses many medical experts because the primary ingredient in marijuana, THC, has anti-nausea effects. In fact, the cannabinoid medications dronabinol and nabilone have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration to treat nausea caused by chemotherapy. In one study, about 84% of people who received treatment for CHS stopped using cannabis, and of those, about 86% reported resolution of symptoms. One study found up to 6% of people who went to the emergency room for cyclical vomiting had CHS.
- Continuing to use cannabis despite CHS can lead to potentially life threatening complications.
- The only treatment that can get rid of CHS symptoms for good is to stop using cannabis completely.
- The hot temperatures may provide some relief as they affect your hypothalamus, the part of your brain that regulates both vomiting and your internal body temperature.
Cannabinoid Hyperemesis Syndrome (CHS)
Ultimately, the treatment of any illness is the removal of precipitating factors, not merely the management of its symptoms. The CHS recovery phase starts when you stop your marijuana use. When you do this, your symptoms usually start to go away in few days to a few months. Over time, the symptoms will go away completely unless you start to use again. While marijuana seems to bring on nausea in the stomach, in the brain it usually has opposite effect.
If administering antiemetics, the nursing staff should be familiar with the adverse event profile so they can report any concerns that may arise. It’s still not clear which of the more than 100 cannabinoids found in cannabis are responsible for CHS, but it’s thought that CBD could potentially be a contributor. Keep in mind none of these treatments will be effective if you continue using cannabis products.
How common is cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome?
But occasionally, patients who arrive at a Substance abuse hospital with what initially looks like CHS can instead have pancreatitis, gastritis, gastrointestinal reflux disease (GERD), appendicitis, or other problems. So, Heard says, these patients often end up going through a lot of testing. And, of course, stop using marijuana, which is the only long-term solution. “So, people might not be actively smoking it but still might have a fairly significant amount of THC coming out of your system, and it can be enough to trigger symptoms,” he said. CHS is a relatively new disorder that is not only difficult to diagnose but to manage. To lower the morbidity, CHS is best managed by an interprofessional team.
Stopping cannabis use is the only known way to permanently get rid of CHS. The researchers found that 32.9 percent of the participants reported having experienced symptoms of CHS in the past. A 2017 review of studies found that 97.4 percent of people who developed CHS reported using cannabis at least weekly.
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According to St. Luke’s Health System, experts are still trying to figure out why https://ecosoberhouse.com/ CHS occurs in some heavy marijuana users and not others. This is because many doctors are unaware of the syndrome and because individuals rarely want to admit to using marijuana, an illegal substance in the United States. To diagnose CHS, a healthcare professional will study your symptoms and ask you questions. They’ll also examine your abdomen and may order tests to rule out other causes of vomiting. CHS symptoms typically present in a cyclical pattern every few weeks to months when cannabis is being used. Experts believe CHS is caused by overstimulated receptors in the body that bind with cannabinoids which can trigger a repetitive cycle of nausea and vomiting.
Cannabinoid Hyperemesis Syndrome (CHS): Causes, Symptoms, Treatment
Initial symptoms are feeling sick to the stomach, belly pain and the feeling like you may throw up. After about years of chronic marijuana use, patients begin to have a strong feeling of sickness, throwing up, and belly pain. This is normally when people go see a doctor to find out what is causing these problems.
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