Background and objective: While high prevalence of tobacco and cannabis use are well established in schizophrenia, reports on their co-morbid use is limited. We explored the links between tobacco and cannabis use in an outpatient population meeting DSM-IV criteria for schizophrenia.
Methods: Cigarette smoking behaviors were assessed in an outpaitent population with schizophrenia (N=54) with current (n=18), former (n=24), and no lifetime cannabis dependence (n=12).
Results: We found significant differences in cigarettes per day (CPD) across groups: current dependent patients smoked less CPD than patients with former dependence and those with no history of dependence; former dependent patients smoked significantly less than patients with no history of cannabis dependence.
Conclusions and scientific significance: Preliminary results support an effect of cannabis use status on tobacco consumption. In the absence of cannabis, patients may increase cigarette smoking, suggesting state-dependent effects of cannabis on tobacco. Prospective designs should further examine this relationship between cannabis and tobacco in schizophrenia versus non-psychiatric controls.
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