Using marijuana increases the risk of acute cardiac stress disorders

Marijuana use can cause stress cardiomyopathy
When people ingest marijuana, it can cause abnormal heart muscle dysfunction. This condition, called stress cardiomyopathy, mimics the symptoms of a heart attack. Researchers found that using marijuana could even double the risk of such heart muscle dysfunction.

Researchers at the Luke's University Health Network in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania found in one study that marijuana use can double the likelihood of stress cardiomyopathy. The physicians published the results of their study at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions 2016.

Marijuana consumption can have a negative effect on our heart muscle. Physicians found that people who consume marijuana are more prone to so-called stress cardiomyopathy. (Image: Syda Productions / fotolia.com)

Marijuana use often leads to the broken heart syndrome
According to the researchers, marijuana users suffer almost twice as often from so-called Broken Heart Syndrome (broken heart syndrome) compared to non-users. This result did not change when other cardiovascular risk factors were considered. The active use of marijuana was determined either by information from the patient or by examining the patients' urine, the researchers explain.

Marijuana can be harmful to the heart and blood vessels
The effects of marijuana on the cardiovascular system have not been fully explored. With increasing availability and legalization in some federal states of America, the number of consumers is also increasing. But these people should know that marijuana in some people can be harmful to the heart and blood vessels, explains co-author Dr. Amitoj Singh from St. Luke's University Health Network.

Health effects of stress cardiomyopathy
Stress cardiomyopathy is a sudden transient weakening of the heart muscle. For example, the condition causes chest pain, shortness of breath, dizziness, and sometimes even fainting. Between 2003 and 2011, 33,343 people were hospitalized with stress cardiomyopathy in the United States, the authors explain. Of these, 210 patients (less than one percent) were also identified as marijuana users. The marijuana users were mostly younger and suffered from fewer cardiovascular risk factors, including less high blood pressure, diabetes and high cholesterol, the physicians add.

Marijuana users more often require an implanted defibrillator
Despite the lower age and fewer cardiovascular risk factors, marijuana users were significantly more likely to experience cardiac arrest during exercise cardiomyopathy (2.4 percent versus 0.8 percent). Patients also needed an implanted defibrillator more frequently to correct abnormal heart rhythms (2.4 percent vs. 0.6 percent), the researchers report.

Negative effects of marijuana
According to the researchers, users of marijuana tend to be more prone to depression (32.9 percent vs. 14.5 percent), psychosis (11.9 percent vs. 3.8 percent), anxiety disorders (28.4 percent vs. 16.2 percent) ), Alcoholism (13.3 percent vs. 2.8 percent), tobacco use (73.3 percent vs. 28.6 percent) and multiple substance abuse (11.4 percent vs. 0.3 percent). Some of these factors increase the risk of developing stress cardiomyopathy.

Marijuana users with chest pain should consult a doctor
If you consume marijuana and experience symptoms such as chest pain and shortness of breath, you should consult a doctor. This will help to ensure that you do not suffer from stress cardiomyopathy or other heart problems. Singh.

Limitations of the study
However, the investigation also had some limitations. Because it was a retrospective study, researchers could not determine how often marijuana was used. Also, the period between the consumption of marijuana and the occurrence of stress cardiomyopathy was partially unclear. Observational studies are not designed to prove a causal relationship, explain the physicians. (As)