AHA: Daily Marijuana Use Linked to Incident Heart Failure

MONDAY, Nov. 13, 2023 (HealthDay News) -- Daily marijuana use is associated with incident heart failure, and cannabis use disorder (CUD) is associated with increased odds of major adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events (MACCE), according to two studies presented at the American Heart Association Scientific Sessions 2023, held from Nov. 11 to 13 in Philadelphia.

Yakubu Bene-Alhasan, M.D., M.P.H., from Medstar Health in Baltimore, and colleagues used data from the National Institutes of Health "All of Us" Research Program to examine the association between the frequency of marijuana use and new-onset heart failure. The researchers found there were 2,958 events within a median follow-up of 45 months from a final population of 156,999 patients. Daily marijuana use was associated with an increased risk for incident heart failure compared with never use (adjusted hazard ratio, 1.34; 95 percent confidence interval, 1.04 to 1.72). After the addition of coronary artery disease diagnosis as a time-varying covariate in the main model, the association was attenuated and no longer significant (adjusted hazard ratio, 1.27; 95 percent confidence interval, 0.99 to 1.62).

Avilash Mondal, M.D., from Nazareth Hospital in Philadelphia, and colleagues examined the association between CUD in elderly nonsmokers with established cardiovascular disease risk and MACCE. The researchers found that 13.9 percent of 28,535 elderly cannabis users reported MACCE episodes. Compared with the non-CUD cohort, the CUD cohort reported higher MACCE (odds ratio, 1.20), all-cause mortality, dysrhythmia, acute myocardial infarction, transfer to other facilities, and home health care. In CUD users, chronic lung disease, renal disease, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia were predictors of MACCE episodes.

"The main public message is to be more aware of the increased risks and open the lines of communication so that cannabis use is acknowledged and considered," Mondal said in a statement.

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