AIMS: To compare the prevalence of mental disorders between frequent cannabis users with and without dependence and the general population. DESIGN: Cross-sectional comparison of interview data. SETTING: Enriched community sample of frequent cannabis users and a representative sample of non-users and non-frequent users from the general population. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 521 young adult (aged 18-30 years) frequent cannabis users, 252 of whom were with DSM-IV cannabis dependence (D+) and 269 without DSM-IV cannabis dependence (D-), and 1072 young adults from the general population. MEASUREMENTS: Multinomial logistic regression was used to compare groups regarding the presence of DSM-IV mental disorders. Detailed measures of cannabis use, childhood adversity and other substance use were considered confounders. FINDINGS: Compared with the general population, externalizing disorders were more prevalent in D- [odds ratio (OR) = 8.91, P < 0.001] and most prevalent in D+ (OR = 17.75, P < 0.001), but internalizing disorders were associated only with D+ (mood OR = 4.15, P < 0.001; anxiety OR = 2.20, P = 0.002). Associations were attenuated (and often became non-significant) after correction for childhood adversity and substance use other than cannabis. However, the prevalence of mental disorders remained higher in D+ compared with D- (OR = 2.40, P < 0.001), although cannabis use patterns were remarkably similar. CONCLUSIONS: Cannabis use patterns, childhood adversity and the use of other substances are similar in dependent and non-dependent frequent cannabis users. With the exception of more externalizing disorders, the mental health condition of non-dependent frequent cannabis users is similar to that of the general population, whereas it is worse in dependent frequent cannabis users.
AIMS: To compare the prevalence of mental disorders between frequent cannabis users with and without dependence and the general population. DESIGN: Cross-sectional comparison of interview data. SETTING: Enriched community sample of frequent cannabis users and a representative sample of non-users and non-frequent users from the general population. PARTICIPANTS: A total of 521 young adult (aged 18-30 years) frequent cannabis users, 252 of whom were with DSM-IV cannabis dependence (D+) and 269 without DSM-IV cannabis dependence (D-), and 1072 young adults from the general population. MEASUREMENTS: Multinomial logistic regression was used to compare groups regarding the presence of DSM-IV mental disorders. Detailed measures of cannabis use, childhood adversity and other substance use were considered confounders. FINDINGS: Compared with the general population, externalizing disorders were more prevalent in D- [odds ratio (OR) = 8.91, P < 0.001] and most prevalent in D+ (OR = 17.75, P < 0.001), but internalizing disorders were associated only with D+ (mood OR = 4.15, P < 0.001; anxiety OR = 2.20, P = 0.002). Associations were attenuated (and often became non-significant) after correction for childhood adversity and substance use other than cannabis. However, the prevalence of mental disorders remained higher in D+ compared with D- (OR = 2.40, P < 0.001), although cannabis use patterns were remarkably similar. CONCLUSIONS: Cannabis use patterns, childhood adversity and the use of other substances are similar in dependent and non-dependent frequent cannabis users. With the exception of more externalizing disorders, the mental health condition of non-dependent frequent cannabis users is similar to that of the general population, whereas it is worse in dependent frequent cannabis users.
Authors: Katherine T Foster; Brooke J Arterberry; William G Iacono; Matt McGue; Brian M Hicks Journal: Psychol Med Date: 2017-11-27 Impact factor: 7.723
Authors: Claire E Blevins; Ana M Abrantes; Bradley J Anderson; Celeste M Caviness; Debra S Herman; Michael D Stein Journal: Addict Behav Date: 2017-12-20 Impact factor: 3.913
Authors: Deborah S Hasin; Bradley T Kerridge; Tulshi D Saha; Boji Huang; Roger Pickering; Sharon M Smith; Jeesun Jung; Haitao Zhang; Bridget F Grant Journal: Am J Psychiatry Date: 2016-03-04 Impact factor: 18.112