I know people that have had traumatic brain injuries from sports, car crashes, and other accidents. My cousin recently had to have brain surgery as a result of a traumatic brain injury that he experienced while playing football. It was a very scary time, but I’m happy to say, he has made a full recovery. A new study was released which found that marijuana use lowers the mortality rate among patients with traumatic brain injuries. Per Science World Report:
The study, led by researchers at Los Angeles Biomedical Research Institute, surveyed emergency patients for levels of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), an active ingredient present in marijuana. They found that those tested positive for THC had a lower mortality compared to people who tested negative for the illicit substance.
According to the researchers THC plays a key role in protecting the brain in case of a traumatic brain injury.
The researchers looked at 446 patients with a traumatic brain injury. Urine samples were collected to test the presence of THC in their body. It was observed that 82 of the total patients had THC in their system and out of these 2.4 percent patients had died compared to 11.5 percent deaths of patients who had tested negative for the illicit substance.
“Previous studies conducted by other researchers had found certain compounds in marijuana helped protect the brain in animals after a trauma,” said David Plurad, MD, an LA BioMed researcher and the study’s lead author. “This study was one of the first in a clinical setting to specifically associate THC use as an independent predictor of survival after traumatic brain injury.”
Do you know a patient with a traumatic brain injury? Have you recommended marijuana to them? It’s a sensitive subject, but it might save their life. If you suffer from a traumatic brain injury, I recommend you give marijuana a try, and if you already have, please post something about it in the comments section so that others can hear your story.
