Cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome. A report of six new cases and a summary of previous reports

Abstract

Cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome (CHS) is a medical condition which was identified for the first time in 2004 and affects chronic users of cannabis. It is characterized by cyclic episodes of uncontrollable vomiting as well as compulsive bathing in hot water. The episodes have a duration of two to four days. The vomiting is recognizable by a lack of response to regular antiemetic treatment, and subsides only with cannabis abstinence, reappearing in periods of consumption of this substance. The etiology of this syndrome is unknown. Up until June 2014, 83 cases of CHS were published worldwide, four of them in Spain. The first patient of CHS at Mataró Hospital was diagnosed in 2012. Since then, five new cases have been identified. The average duration between the onset of acute CHS episodes and diagnosis is 6.1 years, similar to that observed in previously published cases, an average of 3.1 years. This “delay” of CHS diagnosis demonstrates a lack of awareness with respect to this medical condition in the healthcare profession. With the objective of providing information concerning CHS and facilitating its timely diagnosis, a series of six new cases of CHS diagnosed in Mataró Hospital is presented along with a summary of cases published between 2004 and June 2014. Keywords: cannabinoid hyperemesis, cannabis, cyclical vomiting, compulsive hot bathing