Portal de Periódicos da CAPES

Cannabis withdrawal symptoms in non-treatment-seeking adult cannabis smokers

2010; Elsevier BV; Volume: 111; Issue: 1-2 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2010.04.010

1879-0046

Kenneth H. Levin, Marc L. Copersino, Stephen J. Heishman, Fang Liu, Deanna L. Kelly, Douglas L. Boggs, David A. Gorelick,

Bipolar Disorder and Treatment

Cannabis withdrawal is not recognized in DSM-IV because of doubts about its clinical significance.Assess the phenomenon of cannabis withdrawal and its relationship to relapse in non-treatment-seeking adults.Convenience sample of 469 adult cannabis smokers who had made a quit attempt while not in a controlled environment.Subjects completed a 176-item Marijuana Quit Questionnaire collecting information on sociodemographic characteristics, cannabis use history, and their "most difficult" cannabis quit attempt.42.4% of subjects had experienced a lifetime withdrawal syndrome, of whom 70.4% reported using cannabis in response to withdrawal. During the index quit attempt, 95.5% of subjects reported > or =1 individual withdrawal symptom (mean [SD] 9.5 [6.1], median 9.0); 43.1% reported > or =10. Number of withdrawal symptoms was significantly associated with greater frequency and amount of cannabis use, but symptoms occurred even in those using less than weekly. Symptoms were usually of > or = moderate intensity and often prompted actions to relieve them. Alcohol (41.5%) and tobacco (48.2%) were used more often than cannabis (33.3%) for this purpose. There was little change during withdrawal in use of other legal or illegal substances.Cannabis withdrawal is a common syndrome among adults not seeking treatment. The intention to relieve withdrawal symptoms can drive relapse during quit attempts, giving cannabis withdrawal clinical significance as a target of treatment.