Cannabis may influence bowel motility

Physicians, health care providers, and medical staff caring for patients who use cannabis should be familiar with the effects of the drug on gut motility and thus nuclear medicine imaging, a recent report advises. “Understanding the effects of cannabis and weight loss drugs on gut motility – that is the movement of food throughout the body – is essential for nuclear medicine providers,” said Rutger Gunther, MD, in a March 5 news release from the Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging. Gunther, a radiologist at UT Health San Antonio, and colleagues penned an article published in the March issue of the Journal of Nuclear Medicine Technology titled, “Got the Munchies for an Egg Sandwich? The Effects of Cannabis on Bowel Motility and Beyond.” In the article, the authors suggested that with the expanding legalization of cannabis and its increased use, physicians need to be more attuned to its side effects specifically for performing gastric emptying scans (GES). “Gastric emptying scintigraphy remains the primary imaging modality for evaluating symptoms of gastroparesis such as abdominal pain, bloating, nausea, loss of appetite, and more,” the group noted. As of 2023, 38 states allow the medical use of cannabis, 23 states allow the recreational use of cannabis, and nine states allow low delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC)/high cannabidiol (CBD) ratio cannabis. Although gastroenterology literature has described the effect of cannabinoids on the gut, th...
Source: AuntMinnie.com Headlines - Category: Radiology Authors: Tags: Subspecialties Nuclear Medicine Nuclear Radiology Source Type: news