Young Woman with No Heart Disease Had Cardiac Arrest After Chronic Cannabis Use

A 26-year-old chronic cannabis user presented with sudden cardiac arrest. Initial rhythm was ventricular fibrillation. QTc interval was prolonged at 483 ms. Urine drug screen was positive for THC. Cardiac catheterization at 4 weeks showed normal coronary arteries. Left ventricular ejection fraction, initially reduced to 25-30%, normalized by catheterization. She sustained hypoxic-ischemic brain injury requiring prolonged rehabilitation.

Single case report with ECG, cardiac catheterization, urine drug screen, and clinical follow-up.

As cannabis use expands, clinicians need to consider cannabis-induced cardiotoxicity in young patients presenting with cardiac arrest or arrhythmias, especially when no other risk factors are identified.

A growing number of case reports link cannabis to QTc prolongation and ventricular arrhythmias. While causation cannot be established from case reports, the pattern of young patients with no other risk factors experiencing life-threatening cardiac events warrants systematic investigation.

Single case report cannot establish causation. QTc prolongation has many potential causes. No pre-existing ECG available for comparison. Cannabis use may be coincidental rather than causal.