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Neuroimaging in cannabis use: a systematic review of the literature

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 July 2009

R. Martín-Santos ,
A. B. Fagundo ,
J. A. Crippa ,
Z. Atakan ,
S. Bhattacharyya ,
P. Allen ,
P. Fusar-Poli ,
S. Borgwardt ,
M. Seal  and
G. F. Busatto
...Show all authors
R. Martín-Santos*
Affiliation:
Section of Neuroimaging, PO67 Division of Psychological Medicine, Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London, UK Neuropsychopharmacology Group, IMIM-Hospital del Mar and Department of Psychiatry; Institute of Neurosciences, Hospital Clinic, IDIBAPS, CIBERSAM, Barcelona, Spain INCT Translational Medicine, Brazil
A. B. Fagundo
Affiliation:
Neuropsychopharmacology Group, IMIM-Hospital del Mar and Department of Psychiatry; Institute of Neurosciences, Hospital Clinic, IDIBAPS, CIBERSAM, Barcelona, Spain Universidad Autónoma de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
J. A. Crippa
Affiliation:
Section of Neuroimaging, PO67 Division of Psychological Medicine, Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London, UK INCT Translational Medicine, Brazil Department of Neurosciences and Behaviour, School of Medicine of Riberão Preto, São Paulo University, Brazil
Z. Atakan
Affiliation:
Section of Neuroimaging, PO67 Division of Psychological Medicine, Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London, UK INCT Translational Medicine, Brazil
S. Bhattacharyya
Affiliation:
Section of Neuroimaging, PO67 Division of Psychological Medicine, Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London, UK
P. Allen
Affiliation:
Section of Neuroimaging, PO67 Division of Psychological Medicine, Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London, UK
P. Fusar-Poli
Affiliation:
Section of Neuroimaging, PO67 Division of Psychological Medicine, Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London, UK
S. Borgwardt
Affiliation:
Section of Neuroimaging, PO67 Division of Psychological Medicine, Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London, UK Psychiatric Out-patient Department (SJB), University Hospital Basel, Basel, Switzerland
M. Seal
Affiliation:
Section of Neuroimaging, PO67 Division of Psychological Medicine, Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London, UK Melbourne Neuropsychiatry Centre, The University of Melbourne, Australia
G. F. Busatto
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Sao Paulo University, Brazil
P. McGuire
Affiliation:
Section of Neuroimaging, PO67 Division of Psychological Medicine, Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London, UK INCT Translational Medicine, Brazil
*
*Address for correspondence: Dr R. Martín-Santos, Department of Psychiatry, Institute of Neurosciences, Hospital Clinic, IDIBAPS, CIBERSAM, Villarroel, 170, 08036Barcelona, Spain. (Email: rmsantos@clinic.ub.es)
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Abstract

Background

We conducted a systematic review to assess the evidence for specific effects of cannabis on brain structure and function. The review focuses on the cognitive changes associated with acute and chronic use of the drug.

Method

We reviewed literature reporting neuroimaging studies of chronic or acute cannabis use published up until January 2009. The search was conducted using Medline, EMBASE, LILACS and PsycLIT indexing services using the following key words: cannabis, marijuana, delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol, THC, cannabidiol, CBD, neuroimaging, brain imaging, computerized tomography, CT, magnetic resonance, MRI, single photon emission tomography, SPECT, functional magnetic resonance, fMRI, positron emission tomography, PET, diffusion tensor MRI, DTI-MRI, MRS and spectroscopy.

Results

Sixty-six studies were identified, of which 41 met the inclusion criteria. Thirty-three were functional (SPECT/PET/fMRI) and eight structural (volumetric/DTI) imaging studies. The high degree of heterogeneity across studies precluded a meta-analysis. The functional studies suggest that resting global and prefrontal blood flow are lower in cannabis users than in controls. The results from the activation studies using a cognitive task are inconsistent because of the heterogeneity of the methods used. Studies of acute administration of THC or marijuana report increased resting activity and activation of the frontal and anterior cingulate cortex during cognitive tasks. Only three of the structural imaging studies found differences between users and controls.

Conclusions

Functional neuroimaging studies suggest a modulation of global and prefrontal metabolism both during the resting state and after the administration of THC/marijuana cigarettes. Minimal evidence of major effects of cannabis on brain structure has been reported.

Keywords

Brain effectcannabisCBDcognitive taskscognitionmarijuananeuroimagingsystematic reviewTHC
Type
Review Article
Information
Psychological Medicine , Volume 40 , Issue 3 , March 2010 , pp. 383 - 398
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2009

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