Psychosis and Cannabis: Could a Hasty Diagnosis and Treatment of Schizophrenia be Harmful?
Zoe Boulot, F. Gabayet, Mathieu Besnard, Nathalie Coulon
Archives of Clinical and Medical Case Reports 2021 DOI: 10.26502/acmcr.96550398 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Case study Case report Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 1 |
| Population | A young male patient diagnosed with schizophrenia ten years earlier who uses cannabis |
| Topics | Cannabis |
| Key findings | Argues that a diagnosis of schizophrenia may have been made hastily in a patient whose presentation and history seem more consistent with cannabis-induced psychotic episodes. The authors contend that no clear clinical distinctions between schizophrenia and cannabis-induced psychosis, and no evidence-based treatment guidelines, exist in the literature, and call for further research. |
Abstract
We describe a young male patient who questions his diagnosis of schizophrenia made 10 years ago, and whose clinical presentation and history seem in favour of cannabisinduced psychotic episodes. This case questions the risk of a hasty diagnosis when it comes to concomitant psychosis and cannabis use. This presentation raises medical, therapeutical, and ethical questions. With cannabis use rising globally, cases like this are bound to multiply. There are no evident clinical distinctions between psychosis such as schizophrenia, and cannabis-induced psychosis described in literature, nor evidence-based guidelines on the care patients should benefit from. Further research is therefore needed.
Comparable studies
Other case reports and case series on cannabis, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hallucinogen persisting perception disorder after psilocybin consumption: a case study 18-year-old man with HPPD after mixed psilocybin and cannabis intoxication | 2005 | Case study | n = 1 |
| Cannabis‐induced Koro in Americans American men aged 22-26 with years of cannabis experience who reported negative... | 2001 | Case series | n = 3 |
| “Hallucinations” Following Acute Cannabis Dosing: A Case Report and Comparison to Other Hallucinogenic Drugs Healthy 30-year-old male | 2018 | Case study | n = 1 |
| Hallucinogen persisting perception disorder: A literature review and three case reports Patients with hallucinogen persisting perception disorder | 2018 | Case series | n = 3 |
| Cannabis Psychosis in Young Psychiatric Inpatients Consecutive psychiatric hospital admissions of patients aged 35 and under | 1986 | Case study | n = 25 |