Perceptions of substance-use contributing to or helping to handle psychosis-spectrum symptoms in help-seeking youth and young adults
Year: 2016
Type: other
Abstract: Psychosis-spectrum disorders are characterized, to a varying degree, by the presence of strange or unusual thoughts, feelings, or perceptual experiences. The liability of a “non-clinical psychosis phenotype” is as high as 25% in the population and indicates an increased risk of developing psychosis. Cannabis use prevalence is approximately 16% in teens and associated with initiation of other substances. Cannabis use during adolescence is thought to be a risk factor in the development of psychosis, as the adolescent brain is in a sensitive period of development. Thus, cannabis use represents an environmental risk factor of increased psychosis-risk. Most users of cannabis, though, do not develop psychosis. The potential direction of effects between cannabis and psychosis remains unclear (e.g., causes psychosis, is a coping response, shared causal third variable), as well. Etiology also points to a Gene x Environment interaction/correlation (e.g., COMT gene moderates the association; shared genetic etiology). Temporal sequence further suggests schizotypy precedes cannabis use in some cases, but not others. To date, limited research has focused on the association between psychosis-risk symptoms and perceptions of how drug use may contribute to or help symptoms. Perceptions from patients with full psychosis were reported: “…I had these feeling, long before I started with it [cannabis]…” “…The scenario is this: you first go crazy and you start to smoke…it’s not the origin, it is rather that you try to medicate yourself…” Using a psychosis-spectrum and help-seeking population for comparison, this study sought to better understand the relation between cannabis use and perceptions of drug use contributing to and/or helping with strange thoughts or feelings.
Authors: Sabrina Ereshefsky, Caroline Demro, Camille Wilson, Elizabeth Thompson, Emily Kline, Kristin Bussell, Nicole Jameson, Gregory Epstein, Thomas Tsuji, Gloria Reeves, Jason Schiffman
Institution: University of Maryland, Baltimore County
Language: English
Subfield: Pharmacology
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: gold
OpenAlex ID: W2736163295