A preliminary pharmacodynamic overview of objective measures of intoxication in regular and fast-acting cannabis edibles

Rationale Existing research on biological markers of intoxication while under the influence of cannabis is expansive. We aimed to characterize these parameters across different commercially available products, such as cannabis edibles with both conventional and advanced delivery systems (i.e., fast-acting). Therefore, we sought to examine changes in blood pressure, heart rate, and temperature throughout the administration and intoxication associated with the consumption of a fast-acting cannabis edible, a standard cannabis edible, and a placebo edible. Objectives We hypothesized that these biological markers would be significantly different throughout the time course of intoxication for the fast-acting and standard edible compared to the placebo edible. Methods 20 participants completed all 3 conditions of the within-subjects design. Results Post ingestion of the cannabis edibles, changes in blood pressure over time for the standard edible and the fast-acting edible indicated similar effects on blood pressure. Additionally, significant changes in heart rate were observed in both the standard edible condition and the fast-acting edible condition. We observed similar pharmacodynamic effects of cannabis consumption across both standard- and fast-acting edibles, with small but significant differences in blood pressure and heart rate across fast-acting and standard edibles. Heart rate was higher for participants at the onset of and across all conditions, including the placebo, and interestingly decreased over the course of the session. There were no significant differences in temperature across time or condition. Conclusions These results provide insight to the biological effects of cannabis edibles, furthering our knowledge of physiological responses to cannabis edible products.