What topics does this cannabis study cover?

This study covers research on: Pain, THC.

Where was this research published?

Published in Neurosurgery practice on June 1, 2026.

Marijuana users show better recovery in complex spine surgery

Impact of Preoperative Marijuana Use on Functional Recovery and Complications After Spinopelvic Fusion in Adult Spinal Deformity.

Neurosurgery practice • June 1, 2026 • Moderately Relevant

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AI Summary

This retrospective study examined how preoperative marijuana use affects surgical outcomes in 155 adult patients undergoing complex long-segment spinopelvic fusion procedures. The research compared 34 cannabis users with 121 non-users, analyzing their recovery and complication rates. Importantly, marijuana users in this cohort had higher preoperative opioid dependence (64.7% vs 42.9%), more previous spine surgeries (52.9% vs 19.0%), and greater baseline disability scores, suggesting they represented a more complex patient population.

Despite their higher baseline disability, marijuana users experienced significantly greater functional improvement, with an average 43.7-point reduction in disability scores compared to 37.1 points in non-users. Notably, there were no significant differences in complication rates between groups, including medical complications like deep vein thrombosis or pulmonary embolism, mechanical complications such as pseudarthrosis or hardware failure, hospital stay duration, or blood transfusion requirements. Pain reduction, radiographic corrections, and surgical parameters were also comparable between the two groups.

These findings suggest that preoperative cannabis use was not associated with worse surgical outcomes or increased complications in long-segment spinal fusion procedures. However, the authors emphasize this is preliminary evidence from a modest sample size. The enhanced functional recovery observed in cannabis users may reflect their higher initial disability levels or other unmeasured factors, warranting future prospective studies with standardized measurement of cannabis exposure to validate these results and understand the mechanisms involved.

📄 Original Abstract

With the rising prevalence of marijuana use and increasing rates of complex spinal deformity surgeries, understanding the impact of cannabis on perioperative outcomes is crucial. Previous studies yield mixed results on fusion success, complications, and opioid use in spine surgery, but none have focused on long-segment spinopelvic fusions. This retrospective cohort study analyzed 155 adult patients undergoing posterior spinal fusion from the pelvis to L2 or higher between 2015 and 2023. Patients were stratified by preoperative marijuana use (n = 34 users vs n = 121 nonusers). Baseline demographics, surgical parameters, clinical outcomes [Oswestry Disability Index (ODI), visual analog scale], radiographic measures (pelvic tilt, lumbar lordosis, and sagittal vertical axis), and complications were compared using t-tests, χ2 tests, and logistic regression, with P < .05 considered significant. Marijuana users had higher preoperative opioid dependence (64.7% vs 42.9%, P = .025), more previous spine surgeries (52.9% vs 19.0%, P < .001), and elevated preoperative ODI scores (56.9 vs 52.8, P = .038), but demonstrated greater ODI improvement (43.7 vs 37.1, P = .003). No significant differences were observed in visual analog scale changes, radiographic corrections, hospital stay (8.8 vs 8.9 days, P = .920), transfusions (2.2 vs 1.5 units, P = .240), medical complications (eg, deep vein thrombosis/pulmonary embolism: 4 vs 21, P = .599), or mechanical complications (eg, pseudarthrosis: 10 vs 36, P > .999, and hardware failure: 12 vs 53, P = .434). In this cohort, preoperative marijuana use was not associated with statistically significant differences in complication rates or inferior outcomes after long-segment spinopelvic fusion. Users experienced enhanced functional recovery, although this finding must be interpreted in the context of their higher baseline disability. Given the modest sample size, these findings should be viewed as preliminary; prospective studies with standardized cannabis exposure metrics are needed to confirm these results.

Paper Type

📄 Research

Publication

Journal: Neurosurgery practice
Published: June 1, 2026
PMID: 41982324
DOI: 10.1227/neuprac.0000000000000218

Authors (9)

Mohsen Rostami Department of Neurosurgery, Brain and Spine, Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida, USA.
Sadegh Bagherzadeh Department of Neurosurgery, Brain and Spine, Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida, USA.
Diego Soto Rubio Department of Neurosurgery, Brain and Spine, Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida, USA.
Dana Saleh Department of Neurosurgery, Brain and Spine, Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida, USA.
Jay Kumar Department of Neurosurgery, Brain and Spine, Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida, USA.
+4 more authors