The Cardiovascular Effects of Marijuana: Are the Potential Adverse Effects Worth the High?

Marijuana is the most commonly abused illicit drug in the United States (US) and much of the Westernized World with a steadily increasing prevalence in usage and abuse over the past decade, especially among adolescents. Much of the available data on 9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the main psychoactive ingredient in marijuana, relates to its neurological effects and anti-emetic properties, with very little on the cardiovascular (CV) effects of THC. Available literature shows that THC has three major effects on the CV and the peripheral vasculature in the form of "cannabis arteritis," cannabis-induced vasospasms, and platelet aggregation, with an unknown verdict on the relationship between marijuana use and atherosclerosis progression.