| Journal | Journal of cannabis research |
| Study Type | Cohort |
| Population | Human participants |
This item covers developments relevant to cannabis medicine and clinical practice. Clinicians monitoring evidence in this area should review the source material.
Colorado was the first state in the United States to legalize recreational cannabis, which provides a unique opportunity to evaluate cannabis urine drug screen (UDS) testing trends in a large healthcare system in response to that policy. This study examined how testing rates and positivity evolved over time and whether testing patterns varied by demographic factors. In this retrospective cohort study, we analyzed all University of Colorado Health visits from 2008 to 2022 using electronic medical record data. We assessed group comparisons with Chi-squared tests and t-tests and demographic predictors of UDS testing using multivariable log binomial models. From 2008 to 2022, the positivity rate for cannabis among UDSs rose from 14% in 2008 to 30% in 2015, then plateaued. The proportion of visits with cannabis testing declined from 0.25% to 0.04%. Younger patients, males, and individuals identifying as Black, Hispanic, or American Indian were more likely to be tested than their counterpart
“This is a development worth tracking. The clinical implications will become clearer as more evidence accumulates.”
💬 Join the Conversation
Have a question about how this applies to your situation? Ask Dr. Caplan →
Want to discuss this topic with other patients and caregivers? Join the forum discussion →
Have thoughts on this? Share it:
FAQ
This study item was assembled from normalized source metadata and pipeline scoring.
