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Marijuana 'bong' smoking and tuberculosis

K Thu1, M Hayes, S Miles

  • 1Department of General Medicine, Calvary Mater Newcastle, Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia. kmthu@yahoo.com

Internal Medicine Journal
|April 5, 2013
PubMed

Insights

Tuberculosis transmission risk increases sixfold when sharing marijuana smoking devices. This study highlights marijuana use as a potential risk factor for cavitating tuberculosis in young Australians.

Area of Science:

  • Public Health
  • Infectious Diseases
  • Epidemiology

Background:

  • Tuberculosis (TB) incidence is typically low in non-indigenous Australian populations.
  • Cavitating TB, a severe form of the disease, presents unique transmission challenges.

Observation:

  • Three cases of cavitating TB were identified in young, non-indigenous Australians.
  • These cases were linked to a shared habit of smoking marijuana via makeshift pipes or bongs.

Findings:

  • A significant association was found between sharing a bong and TB transmission.
  • Sharing a bong with an index case demonstrated a sixfold increased risk of transmission (OR 6.5, P=0.016).
  • 34 positive TB contacts were identified among the cases studied.

Implications:

  • Marijuana use, particularly sharing smoking devices, should be considered a potential risk factor for cavitating TB.
  • Public health strategies may need to address substance use in TB prevention and control among vulnerable populations.
  • Further research is warranted to elucidate the mechanisms of increased transmission risk.

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