Evidence map›Paper›PMID 36829150›Full record

ArticleHarm reduction journal2023

Puff, Puff, Don't Pass: harm reduction for cannabis use during a viral respiratory pandemic.

Ryan D Assaf, Marjan Javanbakht, Pamina M Gorbach, Onyebuchi A Arah, Steven J Shoptaw, Ziva D Cooper

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Harm reduction journal, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
4citing papers in PubMed
1.7field-weighted citation impact, top 18% 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

4 citing papers in PubMed, 7 citations in OpenAlex.

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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Ryan D AssafUCLA Center for Cannabis and Cannabinoids, Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA. rassaf@ucla.edu.ORCID 0000-0002-6651-1765
Marjan JavanbakhtDepartment of Epidemiology, Fielding School of Public Health, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, CA, USA.
Pamina M GorbachUCLA Center for Cannabis and Cannabinoids, Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
Onyebuchi A ArahDepartment of Epidemiology, Fielding School of Public Health, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, CA, USA.
Steven J ShoptawCenter for Behavioral and Addiction Medicine, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
Ziva D CooperUCLA Center for Cannabis and Cannabinoids, Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
University of California, Los Angeles · US

Funding

MSM and Substances Cohort at UCLA Linking Infections Noting Effects (MASCULINE) U01DA036267 · NIDA · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES · PI GORBACH, PAMINA MAE, SHOPTAW, STEVEN J · 2013 to 2024
$20.5M
Scientific and Technical CoreP2CHD041022 · NICHD · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES · PI Martha Jane Bailey · 2016 to 2026
$6.9M
Collaborating Consortium of Cohorts Producing NIDA Opportunities (C3PNO) Second Bridge Funding SupplementU24DA044554 · NIDA · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES · PI GORBACH, PAMINA MAE, SIMINSKI, SUZANNE M. · 2017 to 2022
$6.8M
Sex-dependent effects of cannabis: Assessing abuse-related and pharmacokinetic differences between men and womenR01DA047296 · NIDA · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES · PI COOPER, ZIVA D · 2019 to 2024
$3.5M
NICHD NIH HHS P2C HD041022NIDA NIH HHS R01 DA047296NIDA NIH HHS U01 DA036267NIDA NIH HHS U24 DA044554
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundPrior to the COVID-19 pandemic, cannabis use social practices often involved sharing prepared cannabis (joints/blunts/cigarettes) and cannabis-related paraphernalia. Previous studies have demonstrated that sharing paraphernalia for cannabis, tobacco, and crack cocaine is a risk factor for respiratory viral and bacterial infections. Although COVID-19 is a respiratory viral infection that spreads through droplets and airborne transmission, it is unclear if many individuals adopted harm reduction practices around sharing cannabis. This study: quantifies the prevalence of sharing prepared non-medical cannabis and cannabis-related paraphernalia reported before and during the pandemic; assesses changes in sharing of non-medical cannabis from before to during the pandemic; assess the association between frequency of non-medical cannabis use and sharing of cannabis during the pandemic; and describes how respondents obtained their cannabis and the reasons for changing their cannabis use during the pandemic to explain differences in sharing patterns.

methodsThis cross-sectional study used data collected from an anonymous, US-based web survey on cannabis-related behaviors from August to September 2020 (n = 1833). Participants were included if they reported using a mode of inhalation for non-medical cannabis consumption. We calculated proportional changes in sharing cannabis before/during the COVID-19 pandemic. Associations between frequency of cannabis use and cannabis sharing during the COVID-19 pandemic were assessed using logistic regression analysis.

resultsOverall, 1,112 participants reported non-medical cannabis use; 925 (83.2%) reported a mode of cannabis inhalation. More respondents reported no sharing during (24.9%) than before the pandemic (12.4%; p < 0.01); less respondents shared most of the time (19.5% before; 11.2% during; p < 0.01) and always during the pandemic (5.2% before; 3.1% during; p < 0.01). After adjusting for covariates, the odds of any sharing during the pandemic for those who reported ≥ weekly cannabis use was 0.53 (95% CI 0.38, 0.75) compared to those who reported ≤ monthly.

conclusionsSharing of prepared cannabis and cannabis-related paraphernalia decreased during the COVID-19 pandemic compared to before the pandemic. This finding suggests potential risk mitigation strategies taken by participants for COVID-19 prevention either directly through behavior change or indirectly through adherence to COVID-19 prevention recommendations. Harm reduction messaging around sharing of cannabis during surges of COVID-19 or other respiratory infections may provide benefit in reducing infection among those who use cannabis, especially as cannabis use in the USA continues to increase.

Indexed as

CannabisCOVID-19Cross-Sectional StudiesHarm ReductionHumansPandemicsCannabisCOVID-19InhaledPandemicParaphernaliaPreparedSharingSubstance useViral respiratory infection

Identifiers

PMID36829150
PMCPMC9957690
OpenAlexW4321768758

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.