Rare complication of marijuana inhalation
The dangers of smoking cannabis are disputed, but smoking it through a bong can actually prove to be very dangerous. photo/ DAVID MCNEW
The first Icelandic case of air within the spinal canal, pneumorrachis, was described at a medical conference in Iceland last weekend. The case is unique as it's the first time that air gets into the spinal canal due to a combination of smoking cannabis from a bong and an airplane flight.
A young man came to the ER at the National University Hospital in Reykjavík with severe chest pain, pain which had worsened during a flight from abroad. It came to light that the man had smoked cannabis from a bong (waterpipe) and had been dared by his friends to hold his breath for a long time. This led to a an air-pressure induced injury on his lungs which worsened during changing air pressure on the flight.
According to lung specialist Bára Dís Benediktsdóttir at the National University Hospital, cannabis smoking often causes difficulty in respiration, especially when it is smoked through a water-pipe. She describes the young man's case as unique as air had entered the spinal canal, under the skin and into an area between the lungs. He was treated with oxygen and medication and recovered.
