Cannabis intoxication at admission did not affect nutritional status in burn patients with smaller injuries
A matched study of 152 burn patients found no significant difference in nutritional markers (prealbumin and albumin) between those who tested positive for cannabis and matched controls, despite cannabis's known appetite-stimulating properties.
Quick Facts
What This Study Found
Cannabis-positive burn patients showed no significant differences in admission prealbumin (18.8 vs 19.2, p=0.804), admission albumin (3.9 vs 4.0, p=0.375), or time to peak nutritional markers compared to matched controls. Increased age was associated with lower admission albumin (p<0.001).
Key Numbers
76 cannabis-positive patients matched with 76 controls; prealbumin: 18.8 vs 19.2 (p=0.804); albumin: 3.9 vs 4.0 (p=0.375); days to peak prealbumin: 3.8 vs 3.9 (p=0.876); days to peak albumin: 0.3 vs 1.0 (p=0.088); <20% TBSA burns
How They Did This
Single-institution retrospective study of adult burn patients with less than 20% total body surface area burns who tested positive for cannabis on admission urine toxicology (2015-2024), matched 1:1 with cannabis-negative controls. Outcomes included burn characteristics, nutritional markers, and complications.
Why This Research Matters
Burn patients have extreme metabolic demands and are highly susceptible to malnutrition. Understanding whether cannabis intoxication affects their nutritional status is clinically relevant, especially as cannabis use becomes more common among trauma patients.
The Bigger Picture
This challenges the notion that cannabis's appetite-stimulating effects would meaningfully impact clinical nutrition in acute settings. For burn patients at least, cannabis intoxication at admission appears metabolically neutral.
What This Study Doesn't Tell Us
Restricted to smaller burns (<20% TBSA), so findings may not apply to major burns. Urine toxicology detects recent use but not intoxication level. Retrospective single-institution design. Sample size may be too small to detect subtle differences.
Questions This Raises
- ?Would results differ for major burns with >20% TBSA?
- ?Does chronic cannabis use (vs. acute intoxication) affect burn healing differently?
- ?Could cannabis's anti-inflammatory properties have any effect on burn recovery?
Trust & Context
- Key Stat:
- No significant nutritional differences between cannabis-positive and negative burn patients
- Evidence Grade:
- Moderate: matched cohort design with objective lab markers, but limited by small sample, single institution, and restriction to smaller burns.
- Study Age:
- 2026 publication analyzing 2015-2024 data from a single burn center.
- Original Title:
- Cannabis Intoxication Does Not Impact Nutritional Status in Patients with Small Burns.
- Published In:
- Journal of burn care & research : official publication of the American Burn Association (2026)
- Authors:
- Wang, Sarah, Stanton, Eloise, Emeh, Amara, Manasyan, Artur, Wong, Sunnie, Boudiab, Elizabeth, Baranco, Paige, Johnson, Maxwell B, Gillenwater, T Justin
- Database ID:
- RTHC-08703
Evidence Hierarchy
Looks back at existing records to find patterns.
What do these levels mean? →Frequently Asked Questions
Does cannabis affect nutrition in burn patients?
This study found no significant impact. Cannabis-positive burn patients had similar prealbumin and albumin levels to matched controls, and reached peak nutritional markers at similar times.
Why study cannabis and burns specifically?
Burn patients have extremely high metabolic demands and are prone to malnutrition. Since cannabis stimulates appetite, researchers wanted to know if intoxication at admission would affect nutritional status, but it did not.
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Cite This Study
https://rethinkthc.com/research/RTHC-08703APA
Wang, Sarah; Stanton, Eloise; Emeh, Amara; Manasyan, Artur; Wong, Sunnie; Boudiab, Elizabeth; Baranco, Paige; Johnson, Maxwell B; Gillenwater, T Justin. (2026). Cannabis Intoxication Does Not Impact Nutritional Status in Patients with Small Burns.. Journal of burn care & research : official publication of the American Burn Association. https://doi.org/10.1093/jbcr/irag027
MLA
Wang, Sarah, et al. "Cannabis Intoxication Does Not Impact Nutritional Status in Patients with Small Burns.." Journal of burn care & research : official publication of the American Burn Association, 2026. https://doi.org/10.1093/jbcr/irag027
RethinkTHC
RethinkTHC Research Database. "Cannabis Intoxication Does Not Impact Nutritional Status in ..." RTHC-08703. Retrieved from https://rethinkthc.com/research/wang-2026-cannabis-intoxication-does-not
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.