Pubdate: Thu, 09 Aug 2012
Source: Aurora Sentinel (CO)
Copyright: 2012 Aurora Sentinel
Contact:  http://www.aurorasentinel.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1672
Author: Adam Goldstein

MEDICAL MARIJUANA CAN LAND IN THE HANDS OF ADOLESCENT USERS, STUDY SHOWS

AURORA - Adolescents with access to medical marijuana that's
prescribed to someone else tend to start smoking at a younger age and
are more susceptible to abuse, dependence and symptoms of conduct disorder.

That's according to a new study conducted by researchers at the
University of Colorado School of Medicine, that looked at the use of
medical marijuana by adolescents aged 14 to 18 years old. Stacy
Salomonsen-Sautel, a postdoctoral fellow in the School of Medicine's
Department of Pharmacology, was the lead author of the study, which
also involved input from the school's Department of Psychiatry.

Conducted over a period of roughly 11 months, the study drew input
from 164 adolescents, 121 of whom reported using medical marijuana
that had been recommended or prescribed to someone else. The
participants in the study came from two separate substance abuse
programs in the metro area.

"Almost 74 percent of the patients had used somebody else's medical
marijuana," Salomonsen-Sautel said, adding that the study referred to
that phenomenon as "diverted" marijuana. "They used the diverted
medical marijuana a median of 50 times. We had four patients who had
tried to get a medical marijuana license. One patient did get a license."

In comparing results from subjects who used diverted medical marijuana
and those who used marijuana, but did not take it from another
intended user, Salomonsen-Sautel said the researchers found trends
that pointed to greater dependence. What's more, those who used
diverted marijuana showed a greater trend toward behavioral problems.

"What I found, after adjusting for gender, race and ethnicity, those
who used medical marijuana were younger when they started to use
marijuana on a regular basis," Salomonsen-Sautel said, adding that a
regular basis was defined as at least once a month. "They also had
more conduct disorder symptoms. They also had more abuse or dependence
symptoms."

The study examines a relatively recent phenomenon in Colorado. With
the recent rise of the medical marijuana industry in major Colorado
cities like Denver, there's a dearth of hard research regarding the
impact on adolescents and other users, Salomonsen-Sautel said.

"I think it's still a relatively new area. If you look at literature,
there's really not very much," she said. "We said that one of the main
points is that medical marijuana diversion is very common among
adolescent patients. Our current system does not guard against it."

Part of the reason may stem from a lack of regulation. Unlike other
scheduled prescription medications, medical marijuana is not subject
to a formal monitoring system under the FDA. Patients who receive a
license can buy large amounts or grow marijuana in their homes.

A monitoring program similar to what's in place for other controlled
substances could help stem the impact of diverted medical marijuana on
local adolescents, Salmonsen-Sautel said.

"We also mentioned best practice guidelines to recommend to
physicians," she said. "Recommended physicians could talk about
possible risks of diversion."

The study appeared in the July issue of the "Journal of the American
Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry," and was funded by the
National Institute on Drug Abuse, with supplemental support from the
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.
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