Source: @norml @WeedConnection
Posted By: norml@weedconnection.com
media :: news - Tue, 19 Apr 2016 04:20:21 PST
Study: History Of Marijuana Use Associated With Improved Short-Term Outcomes In Heart Attack Patients
Chicago, IL: Heart attack patients with a history of cannabis use are less likely to die during hospitalization, according to data presented this month at the 2016 meeting of the American College of Cardiology.
Investigators from the University of Colorado compared the hospital records of over 3,800 heart-attack patients who acknowledged having consumed cannabis or had tested positive for it to those of over 1.2 million similarly matched controls.
Marijuana-positive patients possessed a lower mortality risk during hospitalization and were at lower risk for intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP) placement compared to controls. Authors did not speculate as to why cannabis use may be linked to improved short-term survival rates, and did not rule out the possibility that the association may be due to other cofounding variables.
Cannabis' impact on cardiovascular health is not well understood. Separate data indicates that cannabis may temporarily increase blood pressure, particularly in naïve subjects, and that it may be linked to the increased production of a specific protein associated with the risk of heart attack or stroke. Cannabis use is not associated with increased mortality risk in subjects with a history of coronary disease, but it may be associated with poorer outcomes in certain types of stroke patients.
Study: Medical Marijuana Laws Associated With Increased Use Of Alternative Cannabis Delivery Methods
Lebanon, NH: Cannabis consumers who reside in states that permit the medicinal use of cannabis are more likely to utilize alternative ingestion methods, such as vaporization, compared to those who live in states that do not, according to survey data published in online ahead of print in the International Journal of Drug Policy.
Investigators at the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth evaluated self-reported marijuana consumption patterns in a sample of over 2,800 subjects. Authors found that a higher proportion of respondents from non-medical marijuana states preferred smoking cannabis. By contrast, respondents in states with medicinal cannabis access were more likely to acknowledge consuming cannabis via vaporizers or in edible formulations.
Respondents were most likely to acknowledge using alternative methods of ingestion in jurisdictions where there existed a high density of dispensaries.
Researchers observed "no significant differences in age of onset of smoking, vaping, or edibles ... between respondents from MML (medical marijuana law) and non-MML states, across durations of MML status, or across dispensary density categories."
Authors also noted that the passage of more recent state laws regulating the use of cannabis by adults was not positively associated with an increase in the use of alternative methods of ingestion.
Full text of the study, "Smoking, vaping, eating: Is legalization impacting the way people use cannabis," appears in the International Journal of Drug Policy.
Oregon: Governor Signs Multiple Marijuana Reform Measures
Salem, OR: Governor Kate Brown has signed several pieces of legislation into law amending statewide regulations governing cannabis commerce.
Last week, Brown signed emergency legislation, House Bill 4094, to encourage financial institutions to engage in financial relationships with state-compliant marijuana businesses. The measure "exempts financial institutions that provide financial services to (state-approved) marijuana related businesses, researchers and laboratories from any criminal law of this state."
Many financial institutions are reluctant to engage in relationships with marijuana-related business out of fear of federal sanctions.
The Governor also recently signed separate legislation, Senate Bill 1511, to permit adults to legally purchase cannabis-infused edible products, and House Bill 4014, which allows out-of-state residents to invest in marijuana-related businesses.
Maryland: Governor Signs Hemp Research Law
Annapolis, MD: Governor Larry Hogan signed legislation into law this week permitting academic institutions to cultivate hemp as part of a state-sponsored research project.
Members of the House and Senate had unanimously voted in favor of the measure, House Bill 443.
Section 7606 of the United States Agricultural Act of 2014 authorizes states to license institutions of higher education to engage in hemp cultivation absent federal reclassification of the plant.
Twenty-six additional states have enacted similar legislation reclassifying hemp as an agricultural crop and authorizing its cultivation.
In March, members of the Washington legislature passed similar legislation, Senate Bill 6206, overriding a veto from Gov. Jay Inslee.
Lawmakers in Pennsylvania recently approved a similar proposal to establish "a pilot program to study the growth, cultivation, and marketing of industrial hemp." Governor Tom Wolf is expected to sign the measure into law.
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