A new study from Albert Einstein College of Medicine reveals that patients with autoimmune hyperthyroidism who use cannabis are 1.9 times more likely to develop exophthalmos bulging eyes within a year of diagnosis compared to non-users.
Published in Ophthalmic Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery on September 25, 2024, the analysis reviewed data from over 36,000 patients from 2003 to 2023. Of these, 783 were cannabis users, 17,310 used nicotine, and 18,093 served as controls.
The study found exophthalmos occurred in 4.1% of both cannabis and nicotine users, versus 2.2% among controls. “These findings suggest that cannabis usage may be associated with earlier progression or increased short-term severity of thyroid eye disease (TED) symptoms,” the researchers stated.
While a trend toward higher TED incidence in cannabis users was observed at the two-year mark, it was not statistically significant. Cannabis users were also about 2.5 times more likely to be prescribed steroids during follow-up.
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