In a new study, researchers completed a case-control study of cannabis smokers, tobacco-only smokers, and nonsmokers and found that airway inflammation and emphysema are more common in people who smoke cannabis than in cigarette smokers and nonsmokers.
The researchers looked for evidence of emphysema and other lung changes using image analysis of the chest CT scans. They found that people who smoked cannabis had higher rates of airway changes than people who only smoked tobacco or nonsmokers.
Lead author Dr. Giselle Revah, a cardiothoracic radiologist at Ottawa Hospital in Canada and assistant professor in the department of radiology, radiation oncology and medical physics at the University of Ottawa, explained to Medical News Today:
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Emphysema is a disease of the small air sacs in the lungs when the walls of those sacs get damaged. Small holes are created in the lung, and in those areas, the gas exchange function of the lung is impaired (taking in oxygen and removing carbon dioxide).
The researchers suggested these differences might be due to the way that cannabis is smoked, as cannabis smoke typically enters the lungs unfiltered.
