[Psychopathology and differential diagnosis of so-called Cannabis psychoses].
K L Täschner
Fortschritte der Neurologie · Psychiatrie July 1, 1983 DOI: 10.1055/s-2007-1002229 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Observational cohort Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 237 |
| Population | Patients examined for drug-induced psychoses |
| Topics | Cannabis |
| Key findings | There is no distinct disease 'cannabis psychosis' or 'drug-induced psychosis' as separate entities; cannabis psychoses and other drug-induced psychoses show general agreement in symptomatology with schizophrenia. |
Abstract
From 237 patients examined for drug-induced psychoses, 50 cannabis psychoses were examined according to the criterion "main cause of addiction" and 107 were examined according to the criterion "consumption during the last three months before hospitalization". The cannabis psychoses were compared to the other drug-induced psychoses as well as to a control group consisting of 219 schizophrenic patients. General agreement was found with the other drug-induced psychoses as well as with the group of schizophrenic patients. The variation from the symptomatology of the schizophrenics is generally common to both the cannabis psychoses and the other drug-induced psychoses. Judging by the results of our investigations, it must be concluded that there is no disease "cannabis psychosis" in its own right, just as the disease "drug-induced psychosis" also does not exist in its own right. While there is a certain slight drug-specific psychopathological undertone, it does not entitle us to speak of a syndromatic or indeed a nosological entity. The psychopathological cross section does not permit a differentiation in the individual psychoses groups mentioned, although this has often been attempted in the literature. That there are no relevant psychopathological differences between cannabis psychoses and endogenous schizophrenia could, for one, be based on the fact that we are observing the final stage of one and the same underlying pathological process. In this case both syndromes would in practice be endogenous psychoses, with the cause not being known in one case. The psychopathologic similarity of these two psychoses forms could, however, also be based on the assumption that cannabis psychoses are triggered schizophrenias, so that we could in both cases be dealing with one and the same disease. We see the solution to the problem of diagnosing symptomatic psychoses, and in particular cannabis psychoses, in making a diagnosis that takes the etiology into consideration in addition to the syndrome diagnosis.
Comparable studies
Other observational and cohort studies on cannabis, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| High-potency cannabis and the risk of psychosis People with first episode of psychosis and healthy controls from the local population | 2009 | Case-control study | n = 454 |
| Ayahuasca-Assisted Therapy for Addiction: Results from a Preliminary Observational Study in Canada Rural aboriginal population | 2013 | Observational study | |
| Impaired cognitive performance in drug free users of recreational ecstasy (MDMA) Otherwise healthy young people | 2000 | Observational | |
| Continued cannabis use and risk of incidence and persistence of psychotic symptoms: 10 year follow-up cohort study Individuals from the general population in Germany aged 14-24 at baseline | 2011 | Observational cohort | n = 1,923 |
| Cannabis-induced psychosis and subsequent schizophrenia-spectrum disorders: follow-up study of 535 incident cases Patients treated for cannabis-induced psychotic symptoms in Denmark between 1994 and... | 2005 | Observational cohort | n = 535 |