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Updated: Oct 13, 2026

Brain Morphology of Cannabis Users With or Without Psychosis: A Pilot MRI Study
Published on: August 18, 2020
Salivary THC following cannabis smoking correlates with subjective intoxication and heart rate
D B Menkes1, R C Howard, G F Spears
1Department of Psychological Medicine, Otago Medical School, Dunedin, New Zealand.
Abstract:
A cannabis smoking trial was conducted using paid volunteers. Subjective intoxication, measured using a visual analogue scale, was compared with heart rate and with salivary delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) levels at various times after smoking a cigarette containing 11 mg THC. Subjective intoxication and heart rate elevation were significantly correlated with the log of salivary THC. Salivary THC levels are a sensitive index of recent cannabis smoking, and appear more closely linked with the effects of intoxication than do either blood or urine cannabinoid levels.
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