Teen and Young Adult ER Visits Jump for Chronic Cannabis Sickness

Doctors are sounding the alarm after seeing a sharp increase in patients who smoke pot.

Intestinal Disorders Increase Among Marijuana Users

Doctors across the United States are seeing a drastic increase in heavy cannabis users seeking urgent care for a severe gastrointestinal illness. According to KWTX, the surge involves a condition known as cannabis hyperemesis syndrome (CHS), which strikes regular, long-term marijuana users, particularly those who smoke the substance, causing intense stomach pain, persistent nausea, and bouts of vomiting. According to the Cleveland Clinic, the only way to get rid of the prolem is to stop using cannabis.

Marijuana Users Flood Emergency Rooms

Researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Injury Prevention and Control analyzed emergency room visits across approximately 7,500 health facilities nationwide. Between early 2023 and mid-2025, emergency rooms handled roughly 200,000 visits linked to the illness. While patient volume remained steady for much of that window, diagnoses spiked by 16 percent between October and May.

A Change in Medical Coding Highlights the Marijuana Consumption Illness

Public health officials attribute this dramatic shift largely to a change in medical coding rather than a sudden change in patient behavior. Previously, clinicians had to pair separate codes for vomiting and marijuana consumption to track the illness, leading to many cases to be misidentified or overlooked entirely. The implementation of a dedicated diagnostic code last fall streamlined reporting, offering a far clearer picture of a problem that historical estimates suggest afflicts around 2.75 million pot smokers annually.

Younger People Heavily Affected by the Intestinal Disorder

The data revealed a striking uptick among younger demographics, including teenagers, young adults up to age 24, female patients, as well as Black, American Indian, and Alaska Native populations. CDC researchers say this is very concerning because it means these young patients must have been smoking pot for a long time to develop a chronic problem. Doctors say there is an urgent need to educate the public and investigate how modern high-potency THC derivatives, edibles, beverages, and vapes impact younger pot users.