Background: Current estimates report 15% to 40% of adults with a concussion will experience symptoms lasting longer that the expected 3 months post injury. For patients with persistent post concussion symptoms, we are interested in examining cannabis use and we seek to understand the determinants that may be associated with this behavior. 

Purpose: We hypothesize that early life experiences pre-injury may contribute to a patient’s use of cannabis in adulthood, specifically in those who seek tertiary care services for persistent symptoms following a concussion. In order to evaluate this hypothesis, we asked the question whether a measure of early life experience would be related to cannabis use. 

Methods: Study participants were patients who visited a tertiary care concussion clinic from July 2013 to December 2017. Patients completed the survey at the time of their first visit to the clinic. Participants self-reported cannabis use within the 12 months prior to injury and /or current use. The Adverse Childhood Experience (ACE) score was used as a measure of early life stressful experiences.

Results:  A total of 1145 patients completed the study questions. In our study population we found a significantly greater proportion of patients with high ACE scores ≥4/10 among cannabis users 21.7% (34/157) as compared to nonusers ACE scores 14.3% (141/988) (p<.05).      

Discussion:  In our tertiary care clinic study population, we conclude that for patients being treated for persistent post concussion symptoms and having stressful early life experiences, it may be helpful for the clinician to know if the patient is taking cannabis.

Can early life experiences effect cannabis use following a concussion? A survey of patients attending a tertiary care clinic