AI Article Synopsis
- A study aimed to determine if cognitive differences in adolescence precede cannabis use or if early cannabis use negatively impacts cognitive development, analyzing a cohort of 85 participants before and after cannabis exposure.
- Findings indicated that those who later used cannabis exhibited differences in brain activation and poorer executive function scores before cannabis use, supporting the idea of inherent cognitive risk factors rather than cannabis-induced impairment.
- Results suggested that while early cannabis onset might not directly cause neurocognitive deficits, earlier developmental issues could influence the likelihood of substance use, implying that longer exposure to cannabis might be necessary to observe clear cognitive effects.
Article Abstract
Background: Retrospective neuroimaging studies have suggested an association between early cannabis onset and later neurocognitive impairment. However, these studies have been limited in their ability to distinguish substance use risk factors from cannabis-induced effects on neurocognition. We used a prospective cohort design to test whether neurocognitive differences preceded cannabis onset (substance use risk model) and if early cannabis use was associated with poorer neurocognitive development (cannabis exposure model).
Methods: Participants (N = 85) completed a visuospatial working memory task during functional magnetic resonance imaging and multiple cognitive assessments (Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-IV, Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery) at 12 years of age, before any reported cannabis use (baseline), and at 15 years of age (follow-up: N = 85 cognitive assessments, n = 67 neuroimaging). By follow-up, 22 participants reported using cannabis and/or failed a Δ-tetrahydrocannabinol urine screen (users).
Results: At baseline, group differences supported a risk model. Those who would initiate cannabis use by 15 years of age had activation differences in frontoparietal (increased) and visual association (decreased) regions and poorer executive planning scores (Stockings of Cambridge) compared with noninitiators. Limited support was found for a cannabis exposure model. At follow-up, activation in the cuneus displayed a significant cannabis dose-response relationship, although neither cannabis dose nor cuneus activation was associated with cognitive performance.
Conclusions: The purported neurocognitive effects of early cannabis onset may not be due to cannabis initiation alone but also driven by limitations or late development of neurocognitive systems predictive of substance use. In addition, more prolonged cannabis exposure may be required to observe the cognitive effects of early cannabis onset.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
|---|---|
| http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6561344 | PMC |
| http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.bpsc.2018.05.004 | DOI Listing |
Publication Analysis
Top Keywords
Similar Publications
Want AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?
Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!