Cannabis Use Among OnTrackNY Participants
Publication & project summaries
Persistent cannabis use among young adults with early psychosis receiving Coordinated Specialty Cares in the United States
View PDF version | Read the full study
Amplify OnTrackNY publication summaries summarize peer-reviewed publications focused on quality improvement or research conducted to help us learn & improve the program.
Study snapshot
This study explores how cannabis use among OnTrackNY participants may affect symptoms and other outcomes like hospitalizations, occupational abilities and social abilities.1
This study asks:
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How common is cannabis use among OnTrackNY participants?
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How does continuing to use cannabis affect participants?
Figure 1: Who participated in this study?
This study is based on 983 diverse OnTrackNY participants.
Study findings
Teams report on participant substance use, symptoms, and hospitalizations at enrollment and every three months after. For this study, authors looked at information collected between October 2013 and December 2019.
Finding 1. At entry to the OnTrackNY program 38.8% of participants reported using cannabis. After 1 year in the program, 32.8% continued to use.
Finding 2. Participants who continued to use cannabis after 1 year had more severe symptoms (like hallucinations and delusions), and those who reduced their use saw improvement in their symptoms.
Finding 3. Those who continued to use cannabis were more likely to be hospitalized than those who did not use.
Figure 2: Are more severe symptoms related to cannabis use?
Yes. OnTrackNY participants who continued to use cannabis (red line) reported more severe symptoms during their first year. Please note that more symptoms results in a lower score.
Final thoughts
Cannabis use is common among people who recently joined the OnTrackNY program. However, continuing to use during treatment may lead to more severe symptoms. Reducing cannabis use, however, may lessen how severe one's symptoms are. Future studies should explore how different patterns of cannabis use may affect participants' lives.
References
1. Marino L, Scodes J, Richkin T, Alves-Bradford J, Nossel I, Wall M, Dixon L. Persistent cannabis use among young adults with early psychosis receiving coordinated specialty care in the United States. Schizophrenia Research. 2020 May 28:S0920-9964(20)30289-9.
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