Cannabis Users May Feel More Pain Post Surgery
Using cannabis within the last month was associated with having more pain after surgery compared with not using cannabis recently, according to a study presented at the Anesthesiology 2022 annual meeting.“Cannabis is the most commonly used illicit drug in the United States and increasingly used as an alternative treatment for chronic pain, but there is limited data that shows how it affects patient outcomes after surgery,” said lead author Elyad Ekrami, MD, clinical research fellow of the outcomes research department at Cleveland Clinic’s Anesthesiology Institute, in a press release.It’s estimated that about 2.1 million Americans use medical cannabis, with 62 percent using it to treat chronic pain, according to U.S. Pharmacist.“Our study shows that adults who use cannabis are having more — not less — post-operative pain. Consequently, they have higher…