It isn’t entirely known what causes some people to experience the symptoms of CHS while others do not. Plenty of regular, long-term, and high-potency users of cannabis do not report CHS symptoms. Most cases of CHS have been shown to occur in people who consume cannabis roughly 20 days per month, and about 75% of those patients have used cannabis regularly for more than a year. People in the hyperemetic phase can take up to 12 hot showers or baths during the day to relieve symptoms. 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.
How can I prevent cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome?
- But not every person who uses marijuana, even long-term use, develops CHS.
- Doctors at the hospital ran tests and ordered scans but could not name the source of her unrelenting nausea and vomiting.
- Examples of cannabinoids include tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD).
- Researchers are continuing to examine potential treatment options for CHS.
If you’re a cannabis user, it’s important to know how to properly detox from THC in case of a drug test. Contact your physician right away if you experience symptoms of CHS, and stop consuming cannabis. Recent research, particularly by Dr. Russo in partnership with Endocanna Health, has begun to unveil the genetic factors contributing to CHS. A study of 28 CHS patients identified five gene mutations — single nucleotide polymorphisms or SNPs — potentially responsible for CHS. But occasionally, patients who arrive at a hospital with what initially looks like CHS can instead have pancreatitis, gastritis, gastrointestinal reflux disease (GERD), appendicitis, or other problems.
What Are the Possible Complications of CHS?
Since its symptoms are easily confused with other conditions, it can take about one to two years before people who seek medical help with CHS get an accurate diagnosis. 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. With the continued use of cannabis and a lack drug addiction of treatment, symptoms become more intense. Problems with keeping food and water down can lead to dehydration.
What causes cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome?
“Hyperemesis” is a medical term used to describe severe and persistent vomiting; for example, hyperemesis gravidarum refers to the severe form of nausea and vomiting that may occur during pregnancy. If symptoms go untreated, patients can become severely dehydrated. It is often described as a syndrome that affects only a small portion of people who are heavy, chronic cannabis users.
Essentially, does smoking shorten the healthy years of life or extend the period of morbidity? He continued, “We know that in patients with cancer marijuana actually reduces nausea and vomiting — so for many patients, understanding that for them this is a poison — is a tough pill to swallow.” 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. This is different than CHS, where even a very low dose of THC can trigger severe symptoms.
Patients are often diagnosed with the syndrome based on the way they treat their own symptoms. Typically, patients can only find relief from intense and persistent nausea by taking hot baths or showers. The CHS recovery phase starts when you stop your marijuana use.
The only treatment that can get rid of CHS symptoms for good is to stop using cannabis completely. But there are some other treatments that may help manage your symptoms and make you feel better. The only way to end CHS symptoms is to completely stop using all marijuana products. After you quit, you may still have symptoms and side effects for a few days to a chs from smoking weed few weeks. Because CHS is a fairly new medical condition, not all doctors know about it. Or they might think it’s something else, since repeated throwing up is a sign of many health problems.
- This level of overstimulation may occur as a result of prolonged, chronic cannabis use.
- A 2017 report published in the journal German Medical Science showed that 60 percent of people with the disorder reported that hot bathing reduced CHS symptoms.
- If symptoms persist and you continue to use cannabis, you may experience more severe problems that require hospitalization for treatment.
- People in the hyperemetic phase can take up to 12 hot showers or baths during the day to relieve symptoms.
- If you need help quitting cannabis, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration offers a 24/7 helpline in English and Spanish.
Cannabinoid Hyperemesis Syndrome (CHS) and the Cyclic Vomiting Syndrome (CVS) in Adults
Heard and other physicians say the lack of solid, peer-reviewed research on cannabis’s effectiveness remains reason for skepticism. Its federal status as a Schedule I drug continues to hamper medical-research efforts. Severe and uncontrollable vomiting increases the risk of dehydration and electrolyte imbalances, and in rare cases, patients can experience esophageal tears, Camenga said. Doctors often treat CHS patients who seek help at hospitals with fluids.
Your doctor probably should send you to see a stomach doctor, who knows more about your problem and can help you feel better. Patients with CVS also have times where they are feeling sick to the stomach and can also throw up for between 12 hours to about a week. This can happen when you are stressed, excited, have an infection or when women have their https://ecosoberhouse.com/ period. These findings suggest a complex genetic basis for CHS, involving multiple bodily systems and potentially predisposing individuals to other health conditions. The only way to prevent CHS is to avoid using any form of marijuana.
