Cannabis and anxiety: a critical review of the evidence

Background Anxiety reactions and panic attacks are the acute symptoms most frequently associated with cannabis use. Understanding the relationship between cannabis and anxiety may clarify the mechanism of action of cannabis and the pathophysiology of anxiety. Aims of the present study were to review...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Human psychopharmacology 2009-10, Vol.24 (7), p.515-523
Main Authors: Crippa, José Alexandre, Zuardi, Antonio Waldo, Martín-Santos, Rocio, Bhattacharyya, Sagnik, Atakan, Zerrin, McGuire, Philip, Fusar-Poli, Paolo
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
anxiety
Anxiety - etiology
cannabidiol
Cannabis - adverse effects
Cannabis sativa
Databases, Bibliographic - statistics & numerical data
Humans
Marijuana Abuse - complications
Marijuana Abuse - epidemiology
psychosis
tetrahydrocannabinol
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Background Anxiety reactions and panic attacks are the acute symptoms most frequently associated with cannabis use. Understanding the relationship between cannabis and anxiety may clarify the mechanism of action of cannabis and the pathophysiology of anxiety. Aims of the present study were to review the nature of the relationship between cannabis use and anxiety, as well as the possible clinical, diagnostic and causal implications. Method Systematic review of the Medline, PsycLIT and EMBASE literature. Results Frequent cannabis users consistently have a high prevalence of anxiety disorders and patients with anxiety disorders have relatively high rates of cannabis use. However, it is unclear if cannabis use increases the risk of developing long‐lasting anxiety disorders. Many hypotheses have been proposed in an attempt to explain these relationships, including neurobiological, environmental and social influences. Conclusions The precise relationship between cannabis use and anxiety has yet to be established. Research is needed to fully clarify the mechanisms of such the association. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
ISSN:0885-6222
1099-1077
DOI:10.1002/hup.1048