Researchers Quantify Magnitude of Cardiovascular Risk Associated With Cannabis

WEDNESDAY, June 18, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Cannabis use is associated with major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE), according to a systematic review based on real-world data published online June 17 in Heart.

Wilhelm Storck, from the University of Toulouse in France, and colleagues examined the possible association between MACE and the use of cannabis or cannabinoids in a review of pharmacoepidemiological studies published from Jan. 1, 2016, to Jan. 31, 2023. Twenty-four articles, including 17 cross-sectional studies, six cohort studies, and one case-control study, were reviewed.

In all studies, exposure corresponded to use of cannabis, with one study focused on medical cannabis. The researchers found that the estimated risk ratios were 1.29, 1.20, and 2.10 for nonfatal acute coronary syndrome (ACS), stroke, and cardiovascular death, respectively. No significant association was seen for the composite outcome combining ACS and stroke as measured in two studies. Results for the focused analysis restricted to cohort studies were comparable to the primary model (risk ratio, 1.32).

“Cannabis needs to be incorporated into the framework for prevention of clinical cardiovascular disease,” write the authors of an accompanying editorial. “Cardiovascular and other health risks must be considered in the regulation of allowable product and marketing design as the evidence base grows. Today that regulation is focused on establishing the legal market with woeful neglect of minimizing health risks. Specifically, cannabis should be treated like tobacco: not criminalized, but discouraged, with protection of bystanders from secondhand exposure.”

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