RESULTS Although causality is unclear , heavy and dependent cannabis use is consistently associated with a high prevalence of comorbid psychiatric disorders and learning and memory impairments that seem to recover after a period of abstinence .
Evidence regarding other cognitive domains and neurological consequences including cerebrovascular events is limited and inconsistent .
Abstinence after treatment is only achieved in a minority of cases ; treatment targeted at reduction in use appears have some success .
Potential moderators of the impact of CUD on the brain include age of onset , heaviness of use , CUD severity , the ratio of ∆9-tetrahydrocannabinol to cannabidiol , and severity of comorbid disorders .
Current evidence of long-term effects of daily cannabis use and cannabis use disorder on brain-related outcomes is suggestive rather than conclusive but use is associated with psychiatric morbidity and with cognitive impairments that recover after a period of abstinence
AIMS To summarize and evaluate our knowledge of the relationship between heavy cannabis use , Cannabis Use Disorder ( CUD ) , and the brain .
Psychobiological responses to unpleasant emotions in cannabis users
Aim of this paper is to investigate the psychobiological reactions to experimentally induced negative emotional states in active marijuana-dependent smokers and whether changes in emotional reactivity were reversed by prolonged abstinence . Twenty-eight patients were r and omly included into group A ( fourteen active marijuana-dependent smokers ) or group B ( fourteen abstinent marijuana-dependent subjects ) .  Emotional response evaluation of group B subjects was assessed after 6 months of abstinence .  Fourteen healthy volunteers , matched for age and sex , were used as controls .  Psychometric and emotional response evaluations were performed by administering Symptoms Check List-90 and State-Trait Anxiety Inventory Y-1 ( STAI ) . Neutral and unpleasant set of pictures selected from the international affective picture system and the Self-Assesment Manikin procedure ( SAM ) have been used to determine ratings of pleasure and arousal . Before and after the experimental session , blood sample s were collected to determine ACTH and cortisol plasma levels . Active cannabis users displayed significantly higher levels of pleasantness SAM scores and lower levels of arousal SAM scores compared to abstinent cannabis users and controls in response to emotional task . In a close parallel with psychological data , hormonal findings indicate a persistent hyperactivity of hypothalamus – pituitary – adrenal ( HPA ) axis in cannabis users , particularly among active marijuana smokers , and an impaired hormonal reaction to negative emotions , in comparison with healthy subjects . The capacity of the HPA axis to respond to stressful stimuli/negative emotions seems to be only partially recovered after 6 months of abstinence . Ours findings , although obtained in a small number of subjects , suggest an association between active cannabis use , subjective reduced sensitivity to negative emotions and threat and HPA axis dysfunction
RESULTS Although causality is unclear , heavy and dependent cannabis use is consistently associated with a high prevalence of comorbid psychiatric disorders and learning and memory impairments that seem to recover after a period of abstinence .
Evidence regarding other cognitive domains and neurological consequences including cerebrovascular events is limited and inconsistent .
Abstinence after treatment is only achieved in a minority of cases ; treatment targeted at reduction in use appears have some success .
Potential moderators of the impact of CUD on the brain include age of onset , heaviness of use , CUD severity , the ratio of ∆9-tetrahydrocannabinol to cannabidiol , and severity of comorbid disorders .
Current evidence of long-term effects of daily cannabis use and cannabis use disorder on brain-related outcomes is suggestive rather than conclusive but use is associated with psychiatric morbidity and with cognitive impairments that recover after a period of abstinence
AIMS To summarize and evaluate our knowledge of the relationship between heavy cannabis use , Cannabis Use Disorder ( CUD ) , and the brain .