Synthetic cannabinoids cause far more severe and unpredictable toxicities than marijuana
A review of synthetic cannabinoid toxicities found severe effects across multiple organ systems, including cardiac arrest, psychosis, seizures, kidney failure, and deaths from products tainted with rat poison.
Quick Facts
What This Study Found
Synthetic cannabinoids produced a wide range of severe toxicities including arrhythmias, myocardial infarction, sudden cardiac death, psychosis, suicidal ideation, seizures, acute tubular necrosis, and intracranial hemorrhage. An outbreak of coagulopathies linked to brodifacoum-contaminated products caused at least 4 deaths.
Key Numbers
At least 4 deaths from brodifacoum-contaminated synthetic cannabinoids. Toxicities affected cardiovascular, neurological, renal, and hematological systems. Products are not detected on routine drug screens.
How They Did This
Literature review searching PubMed and SciFinder databases for reports on synthetic cannabinoid toxicities, limited to human studies in English.
Why This Research Matters
Synthetic cannabinoids are marketed as safe marijuana alternatives, but they are far more potent at cannabinoid receptors and produce unpredictable, sometimes fatal toxicities. Their constantly changing chemical compositions and absence from standard drug tests make them particularly dangerous.
The Bigger Picture
The synthetic cannabinoid problem is a moving target. New compounds appear faster than they can be studied or regulated. The toxicity profile is fundamentally different from natural cannabis, making the "synthetic marijuana" label dangerously misleading.
What This Study Doesn't Tell Us
The review relied on published case reports and case series, which may overrepresent severe outcomes. The constantly changing composition of synthetic cannabinoids means findings may not apply to newer formulations.
Questions This Raises
- ?How can emergency departments better detect synthetic cannabinoid exposure?
- ?Are there common mechanisms underlying the diverse organ toxicities?
- ?Would expanded cannabis legalization reduce synthetic cannabinoid use?
Trust & Context
- Key Stat:
- At least 4 deaths from contamination
- Evidence Grade:
- Rated moderate because the review synthesizes multiple human case reports and series, though the evidence is observational rather than experimental.
- Study Age:
- Published in 2019. The synthetic cannabinoid landscape continues to evolve with new compounds appearing regularly.
- Original Title:
- Review of the many faces of synthetic cannabinoid toxicities.
- Published In:
- The mental health clinician, 9(2), 93-99 (2019)
- Database ID:
- RTHC-01906
Evidence Hierarchy
Summarizes existing research on a topic.
What do these levels mean? →Frequently Asked Questions
Are synthetic cannabinoids safer than marijuana?
No. This review documented far more severe toxicities from synthetic cannabinoids than are typically associated with natural cannabis, including cardiac arrest, kidney failure, and deaths. They are more potent and unpredictable.
Do drug tests detect synthetic cannabinoids?
Standard drug tests generally do not detect synthetic cannabinoids, which is one reason some users choose them. This also makes it harder for emergency physicians to identify exposure.
Why did some synthetic cannabinoids cause bleeding?
An outbreak of coagulopathy was caused by products contaminated with brodifacoum, a chemical used in rat poison. This illustrates how unregulated manufacturing introduces additional dangers beyond the drugs themselves.
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Cite This Study
https://rethinkthc.com/research/RTHC-01906APA
Alipour, Azita; Patel, Puja Baldev; Shabbir, Zaheera; Gabrielson, Stephen. (2019). Review of the many faces of synthetic cannabinoid toxicities.. The mental health clinician, 9(2), 93-99. https://doi.org/10.9740/mhc.2019.03.093
MLA
Alipour, Azita, et al. "Review of the many faces of synthetic cannabinoid toxicities.." The mental health clinician, 2019. https://doi.org/10.9740/mhc.2019.03.093
RethinkTHC
RethinkTHC Research Database. "Review of the many faces of synthetic cannabinoid toxicities..." RTHC-01906. Retrieved from https://rethinkthc.com/research/alipour-2019-review-of-the-many
Access the Original Study
Study data sourced from PubMed, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health.
This study breakdown was produced by the RethinkTHC research team. We analyze and report published research findings without making health recommendations. All interpretations are based solely on the published abstract and study data.