Hostname: page-component-f554764f5-rj9fg Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2025-04-22T14:41:43.472Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Does Cannabis Use Cause Declines in Neuropsychological Functioning? A Review of Longitudinal Studies

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  04 December 2017

Raul Gonzalez ,
Ileana Pacheco-Colón ,
Jacqueline C. Duperrouzel  and
Samuel W. Hawes
Raul Gonzalez*
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, Florida International University, Miami, Florida
Ileana Pacheco-Colón
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, Florida International University, Miami, Florida
Jacqueline C. Duperrouzel
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, Florida International University, Miami, Florida
Samuel W. Hawes
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, Florida International University, Miami, Florida
*
Correspondence and reprint requests to: Raul Gonzalez, 11200 S.W. 8th Street, AHC-4 Room 461, Miami, FL 33199. E-mail: [email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Cannabis use has been linked to impairments in neuropsychological functioning across a large and continually expanding body of research. Yet insight into underlying causal relations remains limited due to the historically cross-sectional nature of studies in this area. Recently, however, studies have begun to use more informative design strategies to delineate these associations. The aim of this article is to provide a critical evaluation and review of research that uses longitudinal designs to examine the link between cannabis use and neuropsychological functioning. In summarizing the primary findings across these studies, this review suggests that cannabis use leads to neuropsychological decline. However, across most studies, these associations were modest, were present only for the group with the heaviest cannabis use, and were often attenuated (or no longer significant) after controlling for potential confounding variables. Future studies with neuropsychological data before and after initiation of cannabis use, along with careful measurement and control of “shared risk factors” between cannabis use and poorer neuropsychological outcomes, are needed to better understand who, and under what conditions, is most vulnerable to cannabis-associated neuropsychological decline. (JINS, 2017, 23, 893–902)

Keywords

CannabisCognitionMarijuanaNeuropsychologyLongitudinalDrug abuse
Type
Section 3 – Neuropsychiatric Disorders
Information
Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society , Volume 23 , Special Issue 9-10: Special Issue: Commemoration of the 50th Anniversary of the International Neuropsychological Society , October 2017 , pp. 893 - 902
Copyright
Copyright © The International Neuropsychological Society 2017 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Article purchase

Temporarily unavailable

References

Batalla, A., Bhattacharyya, S., Yucel, M., Fusar-Poli, P., Crippa, J.A., Nogue, S., & Martin-Santos, R. (2013). Structural and functional imaging studies in chronic cannabis users: A systematic review of adolescent and adult findings. PLoS One, 8(2), e55821. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0055821 CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Borgelt, L.M., Franson, K.L., Nussbaum, A.M., & Wang, G.S. (2013). The pharmacologic and clinical effects of medical cannabis. Pharmacotherapy, 33(2), 195–209. doi: 10.1002/phar.1187 Google Scholar
Broyd, S.J., van Hell, H.H., Beale, C., Yücel, M., & Solowij, N. (2016). Acute and chronic effects of cannabinoids on human cognition—A systematic review. Biological Psychiatry, 79(7), 557–567.Google Scholar
Crane, N.A., Schuster, R.M., Fusar-Poli, P., & Gonzalez, R. (2013). Effects of cannabis on neurocognitive functioning: Recent advances, neurodevelopmental influences, and sex differences. Neuropsychology Review, 23(2), 117–137.Google Scholar
Crane, N.A., Schuster, R.M., & Gonzalez, R. (2013). Preliminary evidence for a sex-specific relationship between amount of cannabis use and neurocognitive performance in young adult cannabis users. Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society, 19(9), 1009–1015.Google Scholar
Crane, N.A., Schuster, R.M., Mermelstein, R.J., & Gonzalez, R. (2015). Neuropsychological sex differences associated with age of initiated use among young adult cannabis users. Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology, 37(4), 389–401.Google Scholar
Fletcher, J.M., Page, J.B., Francis, D.J., Copeland, K., Naus, M.J., Davis, C.M., & Satz, P. (1996). Cognitive correlates of long-term cannabis use in Costa Rican men. Archives of General Psychiatry, 53(11), 1051–1057.Google Scholar
Fried, P., Watkinson, B., James, D., & Gray, F. (2002). Current and former marijuana use: Preliminary findings of a longitudinal study of effects on IQ in young adults. Canadian Medical Association Journal, 166(7), 887–891.Google Scholar
Glass, M., Dragunow, M., & Faull, R.L. (1997). Cannabinoid receptors in the human brain: A detailed anatomical and quantitative autoradiographic study in the fetal, neonatal and adult human brain. Neuroscience, 77(2), 299–318.Google Scholar
Grant, I., Gonzalez, R., Carey, C.L., Natarajan, L., & Wolfson, T. (2003). Non-acute (residual) neurocognitive effects of cannabis use: A meta-analytic study. Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society, 9(5), 679–689.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Grant, I., Rochford, J., Fleming, T., & Stunkard, A. (1973). A neuropsychological assessment of the effects of moderate marihuana use. Journal of Nervous and Mental Disorders, 156(4), 278–280.Google Scholar
Hall, W., & Degenhardt, L. (2009). Adverse health effects of non-medical cannabis use. Lancet, 374(9698), 1383–1391.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Heaton, R., Miller, W., Taylor, M., & Grant, I. (2004). Revised comprehensive norms for an expanded Halstead-Reitan Battery. Lutz, FL: Psychological Assessment Resources: Inc..Google Scholar
Jackson, N.J., Isen, J.D., Khoddam, R., Irons, D., Tuvblad, C., Iacono, W.G., & Baker, L.A. (2016). Impact of adolescent marijuana use on intelligence: Results from two longitudinal twin studies. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 113(5), E500–E508.Google Scholar
Jacobus, J., Squeglia, L.M., Infante, M.A., Castro, N., Brumback, T., Meruelo, A.D., & Tapert, S.F. (2015). Neuropsychological performance in adolescent marijuana users with co-occurring alcohol use: A three-year longitudinal study. Neuropsychology, 29(6), 829–843.Google Scholar
Johnston, L.D., Miech, R.A., O’Malley, P.M., Bachman, J.G., & Schulenberg, J.E. (2016). Teen use of any illicit drug other than marijuana at new low, same true for alcohol. Retrieved from http://www.monitoringthefuture.org.Google Scholar
Ketcherside, A., Baine, J., & Filbey, F. (2016). Sex effects of marijuana on brain structure and function. Current Addiction Reports, 3(3), 323–331.Google Scholar
Koppel, B.S., Brust, J.C.M., Fife, T., Bronstein, J., Youssof, S., Gronseth, G., & Gloss, D. (2014). Systematic review: Efficacy and safety of medical marijuana in selected neurologic disorders: Report of the Guideline Development Subcommittee of the American Academy of Neurology. Neurology, 82(17), 1556–1563.Google Scholar
Lisdahl, K. (2013). Dare to delay? The impacts of adolescent alcohol and marijuana use onset on cognition, brain structure, and function. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 4, 53.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lorenzetti, V., Solowij, N., & Yücel, M. (2016). The role of cannabinoids in neuroanatomic alterations in cannabis users. Biological Psychiatry, 79(7), e17–e31.Google Scholar
Lynskey, M., & Hall, W. (2000). The effects of adolescent cannabis use on educational attainment: A review. Addiction, 95(11), 1621–1630.Google Scholar
Lyons, M.J., Bar, J.L., Panizzon, M.S., Toomey, R., Eisen, S., Xian, H., & Tsuang, M.T. (2004). Neuropsychological consequences of regular marijuana use: A twin study. Psychological Medicine, 34(7), 1239–1250.Google Scholar
Matthijs, G.B., Gerry, J., Sagnik, B., & Paul, A. (2014). Acute and non-acute effects of cannabis on human memory function: A critical review of neuroimaging studies. Current Pharmaceutical Design, 20(13), 2114–2125.Google Scholar
McKetin, R., Parasu, P., Cherbuin, N., Eramudugolla, R., & Anstey, K.J. (2016). A longitudinal examination of the relationship between cannabis use and cognitive function in mid-life adults. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 169, 134–140.Google Scholar
Mehmedic, Z., Chandra, S., Slade, D., Denham, H., Foster, S., Patel, A.S., & ElSohly, M.A. (2010). Potency trends of Δ9-THC and other cannabinoids in confiscated cannabis preparations from 1993 to 2008. Journal of Forensic Sciences, 55, 1209–1217.Google Scholar
Meier, M.H., Caspi, A., Ambler, A., Harrington, H., Houts, R., Keefe, R.S., & Moffitt, T.E. (2012). Persistent cannabis users show neuropsychological decline from childhood to midlife. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 109(40), E2657–E2664.Google Scholar
Mokrysz, C., Landy, R., Gage, S., Munafò, M., Roiser, J., & Curran, H. (2016). Are IQ and educational outcomes in teenagers related to their cannabis use? A prospective cohort study. Journal of Psychopharmacology, 30(2), 159–168.Google Scholar
National Academies of Sciences & Medicine. (2017). The health effects of cannabis and cannabinoids: The current state of evidence and recommendations for research. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.Google Scholar
Pertwee, R.G. (2006). Cannabinoid pharmacology: The first 66 years. British Journal of Pharmacology, 147(Suppl 1), S163–S171.Google Scholar
Pertwee, R.G. (2008). Ligands that target cannabinoid receptors in the brain: From THC to anandamide and beyond. Addiction Biology, 13(2), 147–159.Google Scholar
Pew Research Center. (2016). Support for marijuana legalization continues to rise. Retrieved from http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/10/12/support-for-marijuana-legalization-continues-to-rise/.Google Scholar
Pope, H.G. Jr. (2002). Cannabis, cognition, and residual confounding. Journal of the American Medical Association, 287(9), 1172–1174.Google Scholar
Center for Behavioral Health Statistics and Quality. (2016). Key substance use and mental health indicators in the Unites States: Results from the 2015 National Survey on Drug Use and Helath. (HHS Publication No. SMA 16-4984, NSDUH Series H-51). Retrieved from https://www.shamhsa.gov/data/.Google Scholar
Rogeberg, O. (2013). Correlations between cannabis use and IQ change in the Dunedin cohort are consistent with confounding from socioeconomic status. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 110(11), 4251–4254.Google Scholar
Satz, P., Fletcher, J.M., & Sutker, L.S. (1976). Neuropsychologic, intellectual, and personality correlates of chronic marijuana use in native Costa Ricans. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 282, 266–306.Google Scholar
Schreiner, A.M., & Dunn, M.E. (2012). Residual effects of cannabis use on neurocognitive performance after prolonged abstinence: A meta-analysis. Experimental and Clinical Psychopharmacology, 20(5), 420–429.Google Scholar
Smart, R., Caulkins, J.P., Kilmer, B., Davenport, S., & Midgette, G. (2017). Variation in cannabis potency and prices in a newly-legal market: Evidence from 30 million cannabis sales in Washington State. Addiction. doi: 10.1111/add.13886 Google Scholar
Tait, R.J., Mackinnon, A., & Christensen, H. (2011). Cannabis use and cognitive function: Eight year trajectory in a young adult cohort. Addiction, 106(12), 2195–2203.Google Scholar
Volkow, N.D., Baler, R.D., Compton, W.M., & Weiss, S.R.B. (2014). Adverse health effects of marijuana use. New England Journal of Medicine, 370(23), 2219–2227.Google Scholar
Volkow, N.D., Swanson, J.M., Evins, A., DeLisi, L.E., Meier, M.H., Gonzalez, R, & Baler, R. (2016). Effects of cannabis use on human behavior, including cognition, motivation, and psychosis: A review. JAMA Psychiatry, 73(3), 292–297.Google Scholar
Whiting, P.F., Wolff, R.F., Deshpande, S., Di Nisio, M., Duffy, S., Hernandez, A.V., & Kleiljnen, J. (2015). Cannabinoids for medical use: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of the American Medical Association, 313(24), 2456–2473.Google Scholar