BACKGROUND Cannabis use (CU) among youth is an increasing public health concern, driven in part by evolving policies that expand access and shift social norms. An emerging consequence is the rise in cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome (CHS), a condition associated with chronic CU. This study examined trends CHS-related acute healthcare encounters among youth across diverse sociodemographic groups using a nationally representative dataset. METHODS We conducted a retrospective cohort study using Epic COSMOS, a database encompassing a nationally representative sample of youth across the United States. The study included individuals aged 6 to 18 years who were diagnosed with CHS from 2017 to 2024. We calculated CHS-related encounter rates per 100,000 using the number of unique pediatric patients with acute healthcare encounters as the denominator. Trends were assessed using joinpoint regression to estimate the annual percent change (APC) and average annual percent change (AAPC). RESULTS A total of 61,908 CHS-related acute healthcare encounters were identified among youth between 2017-2024. CHS encounter rates were consistently higher among females and continued to increase at a faster pace than males, with an APC of 16.1, compared to 11.2. Black youth had an APC of 18.5, and youth from other minority groups had the highest APC at 26.2, compared to other racial groups. CONCLUSIONS CHS-related encounters are rising rapidly, with disproportionately higher increases among female and minority youth. These findings highlight the need for CU prevention efforts tailored to high-risk youth and improved clinical awareness of CHS to support timely diagnosis and management.
Kelly et al. (Fri,) studied this question.