According to a new study of hundreds of thousands of patients with spontaneous pneumothora, also referred to as collapsed lung, those with a history of marijuana use had significantly reduced average hospital stays and in-hospital mortality than non-marijuana users.
Spontaneous pneumothorax (PSP) is a sudden onset of a lung that has collapsed without any apparent cause, which happens when air builds up in the space around the lungs putting pressure on the lung and preventing it from expanding normally. This can cause the lung to partially or completely collapse.
The study, published in the Cureus Journal of Medical Science and conducted by researchers at the University of New Mexico School of Medicine and the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, included 399,495 patients with PSP, 13,415 cannabis users and 386,080 non-cannabis users.
“Cannabis users had a lower risk of sudden cardiac arrest, vasopressor use, the development of acute kidney injury, venous thromboembolism, the requirement for invasive and non-invasive mechanical ventilation, hemodialysis, ventilator-associated pneumonia, and the need for a tracheostomy”, states the study’s researchers.
“Cannabis use was associated with a 3.4 days shorter hospital stay. Additionally, cannabis users showed a lower risk of in-hospital mortality, a trend maintained in the PSM analysis.”
Researchers conclude by stating; “Our study revealed correlations suggesting that cannabis users with PSP might experience lower in-hospital mortality and fewer complications than non-cannabis users.”
For the full text of the study, titled Investigating the Impact of Cannabis Consumption on Hospital Outcomes in Patients With Primary Spontaneous Pneumothorax: A Nationwide Analysis, click here.
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