For the complex human brain, there are few simple answers out there. This includes answers about stroke causes and risks, depending on type of stroke, age and other factors.
Now, there's more research on marijuana use, specific type of stroke and age:
 |
| Photo from National Library of Medicine |
A team led by Dr. Valerie Wolff, at the University Hospital of Strasbourg in France, examined 334 patients younger than 45 who suffered an ischemic stroke -- an attack caused by blocked blood flow to the brain. Fifty-eight of the patients were marijuana users.
The study couldn't prove that marijuana caused strokes, but Wolff's team did find some differences in stroke characteristics between pot users and non-users.
For example, a narrowing (stenosis) of the arteries in the skull was the cause of stroke in 45 percent of marijuana users, compared with only 14 percent of non-users, the findings showed. ...
The study appears in the Nov. 3 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. In a journal news release, editor-in-chief Dr. Valentin Fuster said that "the effects of cannabis have been considered benign for a long time; however, evidence continues to build about the relationship of its use with stroke."
2 comments:
Except that they didn't look into the possibility that regular smoking might cause this.
Marijuana users with stroke were also younger, more likely to be male, more likely to also smoke cigarettes. To me that is biased research.
Dean, good points. Let me add that every study has its limitations. This is just one added to the pile in the search for answers.
Post a Comment