From the January ACP Hospitalist, copyright © 2016 by the American College of Physicians
By Mollie Durkin
After a decrease in hospitalizations related to marijuana alone from 2004 to 2007, these inpatient admissions ballooned from 11,267 in 2007 to 20,471 in 2011—an 82% increase, said Dr. Zhu, a postdoctoral associate at Duke University Medical Center in Durham, N.C.
This analysis considered 4 categories of marijuana use: marijuana only; marijuana and alcohol; marijuana and other illicit drugs; and marijuana, other illicit drugs, and alcohol. “Our preliminary findings indicated that both the number of cannabis-related ED visits and hospitalizations has increased since 2007, especially for visits involving cannabis use only,” Dr. Zhu said. Marijuana-related ED visits increased by 71% from 2004 to 2011, from 280,671 to 478,989, she reported. Those related to use of marijuana alone increased faster than other categories, reaching 144,566 in 2011, double the number of visits in 2004.
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