New guidelines from the American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine instruct physicians to ask patients about their cannabis use before undergoing procedures requiring anesthesia.
The guidelines emphasize that cannabis use could worsen pain and nausea after surgery, and it could increase the need for opioids, according to a Jan. 3 news release from the ASRA.
The guidelines were developed in response to an increase in cannabis use in America in the last 20 years, with about 10 percent of Americans using it regularly, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
During the pre-screening, anesthesiologists should ask what type of cannabis product is used, how it is used, how much is used and how frequently it is used.
The new guidelines are based on several factors, including a literature review by 13 experts, including anesthesiologists, patient advocates and chronic pain physicians.
This is the first official U.S. guideline issued on perioperative management of cannabis, according to the release.
Additional guidelines also suggest counseling patients on cannabis use and surgery, delaying surgery for up to two hours after smoking cannabis, increased vigilance of heart and neurological problems and using multiple methods of anesthesia and pain control.