While many use marijuana for managing chronic pain or as a way to unwind at the end of the day, according to UW Medicine, over the last decade there have been more and more regular cannabis users coming into emergency departments with abdominal pain and severe, prolonged vomiting.
It wasn’t until October that clinicians could use a single ICD-10 diagnostic code (R11.16) for the weed-induced gut issues called “cannabis hyperemesis syndrome.” The condition usually starts within a day of using cannabis and can last for days.
Due to the syndrome’s newness, many patients often have to make multiple trips to the emergency room before they receive an accurate diagnosis. The new code will allow researchers and clinicians to track the negative effects of cannabis use…