Introduction:

Cannabis is the most widely used psychoactive substance among adolescents worldwide, and the age at which consumption begins to decrease. Cannabis use in adolescents is associated with a wide range of adverse consequences in adulthood including increased vulnerability to psychosis and other mental disorders, as well as suicidal ideation and attempt. The aim of this study is to extend understanding of the link between cannabis use and mental illness by examining whether cannabis use at early ages predicts transdiagnostic variables that are precursors to severe clinical diagnoses.

Methods:

A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted. The sample was made up of 605 adolescents from 7th to 9th grades, with a mean age of 13.2 years (SD = 1.0, 47% girls). The variables evaluated were: anomalous perception of reality, intolerance of uncertainty, rumination, suicide attempt, hopelessness, and symptoms of depression and anxiety. The administration of the questionnaires was carried out in groups of 20 participants under the supervision of a researcher in a unique session of 1 hour.

Results:

Adolescent cannabis users scored higher on all variables assessed: anomalous perception of reality (Cohen’s d = .60), rumination (d = .48), intolerance of uncertainty (d = .11), suicidal attempt (affirmative answer: 25.9% of users vs 7.7% of non-users), hopelessness (d = .85), symptoms of depression (d = .80), and anxiety (d = .39). A binary logistic regression showed that the only variable uniquely related to cannabis use was hopelessness (Wald = 4.560, OR: 1.159, p = .033).

Conclusions:

Among some mental health risk factors, hopelessness appears uniquely related to cannabis use. Adolescents may use cannabis as a coping strategy for negative thoughts and emotions, or it may be a consequence of cannabis use. Future prevention programs should focus on preventing/treating modifiable factors such as hopelessness, and delaying cannabis use in specific subgroups of adolescents who experience pathologies such as depression or suicide attempts.

中文翻译：

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早期青少年中的大麻使用和经诊断的心理健康风险因素

介绍：

大麻是全世界青少年中使用最广泛的精神活性物质，消费开始下降的年龄。青少年使用大麻与成年后的一系列不良后果有关，包括更容易患精神病和其他精神障碍，以及自杀意念和企图。本研究的目的是通过检查早期使用大麻是否预测作为严重临床诊断前兆的跨诊断变量，来扩展对大麻使用与精神疾病之间联系的理解。

方法：

进行了描述性横断面研究。样本由 605 名 7 至 9 年级的青少年组成，平均年龄为 13.2 岁（SD  = 1.0，47% 为女孩）。评估的变量是：对现实的异常感知、对不确定性的不容忍、反刍、自杀企图、绝望以及抑郁和焦虑症状。在研究人员的监督下，以 20 名参与者为一组，在 1 小时的独特会话中进行问卷的管理。

结果：

青少年大麻使用者在所有评估变量上得分较高：对现实的异常感知（Cohen's d  = .60）、反刍（d  = .48）、对不确定性的不容忍（d  = .11）、自杀企图（肯定回答：25.9% 的使用者与 7.7% 的非用户）、绝望 ( d  = .85)、抑郁症状 ( d  = .80) 和焦虑 ( d  = .39)。二元逻辑回归表明，唯一与大麻使用相关的变量是绝望（Wald = 4.560，OR：1.159，p  = .033）。

结论：

在一些心理健康风险因素中，绝望似乎与吸食大麻有关。青少年可能会使用大麻作为应对消极思想和情绪的策略，也可能是使用大麻的结果。未来的预防计划应侧重于预防/治疗可改变的因素，如绝望，并延迟在经历抑郁或自杀未遂等疾病的特定青少年亚群中使用大麻。