Pediatric Emergency Medicine Fellow Phoenix Children's Hospital Phoenix, Arizona, United States
Background: Increased rates of accidental marijuana ingestion have been demonstrated in states following both decriminalization of medical marijuana and recreational legalization of marijuana, most commonly by examining changes in poison control center call volume. Although increased severity of symptoms associated with accidental ingestions have also been described in pediatric patients compared to adults, there is very limited data that compares severity of ingestion before and after recreational legalization in pediatric patients. Objective: This study aims to examine and compare accidental marijuana ingestions in patients aged 0-10 before and after legalization of recreational marijuana in Arizona, which occurred on January 21, 2021. Additionally, this study will examine and compare hospital admission rates, hospital length of stay, percentage of patients requiring ventilatory support, percentage of patients who received a CT scan, and percentage of patients who received bloodwork before and after recreational legalization. Design/Methods: This is a single-center, retrospective chart review of patients presenting to the emergency department with concern for accidental ingestion of marijuana between January 21, 2019 and January 21, 2023. The study was approved by the Phoenix Children’s IRB (IRB-22-292). Cases were identified using ICD-10 codes related to “poisoning by cannabis, accidental” and positive urine drug screens for THC. Data elements were extracted and have been submitted to the biostatistics team for analysis. Data analysis will include testing for significance in the difference in number of accidental marijuana ingestions using a one sample z-test. Secondary endpoints will be compared using chi-squared or fisher's exact test for categorical variables, and two-independent sample t-test or Wilcoxon rank-sum test for continuous variables. Statistical significance level is 0.05. The estimated completion of data analysis is early November, 2023.
