Evidence map›Paper›PMID 30176957›Full record

ArticlePsychological medicine2019

Which biological and self-report measures of cannabis use predict cannabis dependency and acute psychotic-like effects?

H Valerie Curran, Chandni Hindocha, Celia J A Morgan, Natacha Shaban, Ravi K Das, Tom P Freeman

Open access · hybridAbstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Psychological medicine, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 31 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
31citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
5.3field-weighted citation impact, top 4% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

31 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 62 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Trial
  3. Trial
  4. Cannabis use frequency and driving safety: Associations between cannabis use frequency and driving perceptions and behaviors.Psychology of addictive behaviors : journal of the Society of Psychologists in Addictive Behaviors · 2026
    Article
  5. Review
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  7. Article
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  11. Assessing Cannabis Use in People with Psychosis.Cannabis and cannabinoid research · 2024
    Review
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  13. Article
  14. Article
  15. Article
  16. Article
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  18. Review
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.

H Valerie CurranClinical Psychopharmacology Unit,University College London,Gower St, London,UK.
Chandni HindochaClinical Psychopharmacology Unit,University College London,Gower St, London,UK.
Celia J A MorganClinical Psychopharmacology Unit,University College London,Gower St, London,UK.ORCID 0000-0002-8858-4906
Natacha ShabanClinical Psychopharmacology Unit,University College London,Gower St, London,UK.
Ravi K DasClinical Psychopharmacology Unit,University College London,Gower St, London,UK.ORCID 0000-0003-3725-9115
Tom P FreemanClinical Psychopharmacology Unit,University College London,Gower St, London,UK.ORCID 0000-0002-5667-507X
University College London · GBKing's College London · GBUniversity of Exeter · GB

Funding

Medical Research Council G0800268
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundChanges in cannabis regulation globally make it increasingly important to determine what predicts an individual's risk of experiencing adverse drug effects. Relevant studies have used diverse self-report measures of cannabis use, and few include multiple biological measures. Here we aimed to determine which biological and self-report measures of cannabis use predict cannabis dependency and acute psychotic-like symptoms.

methodIn a naturalistic study, 410 young cannabis users were assessed once when intoxicated with their own cannabis and once when drug-free in counterbalanced order. Biological measures of cannabinoids [(Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), cannabidiol (CBD), cannabinol (CBN) and their metabolites)] were derived from three samples: each participant's own cannabis (THC, CBD), a sample of their hair (THC, THC-OH, THC-COOH, CBN, CBD) and their urine (THC-COOH/creatinine). Comprehensive self-report measures were also obtained. Self-reported and clinician-rated assessments were taken for cannabis dependency [Severity of Dependence Scale (SDS), DSM-IV-TR] and acute psychotic-like symptoms [Psychotomimetic State Inventory (PSI) and Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS)].

resultsCannabis dependency was positively associated with days per month of cannabis use on both measures, and with urinary THC-COOH/creatinine for the SDS. Acute psychotic-like symptoms were positively associated with age of first cannabis use and negatively with urinary THC-COOH/creatinine; no predictors emerged for BPRS.

conclusionsLevels of THC exposure are positively associated with both cannabis dependency and tolerance to the acute psychotic-like effects of cannabis. Combining urinary and self-report assessments (use frequency; age first used) enhances the measurement of cannabis use and its association with adverse outcomes.

Indexed as

Self ReportAdolescentAdultAge FactorsCannabinoidsFemaleHairHumansMaleMarijuana AbuseMarijuana UsePrognosisPsychoses, Substance-InducedTime FactorsUrinalysisYoung AdultCannabinoidsBiological markerscannabinoidscannabispredictors of dependencepredictors of psychotic-likeself-report measures

Identifiers

PMID30176957
PMCPMC6541869
OpenAlexW2892311260

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.