EMT Chapter 26-MCIT-F3-2225 | Weed, Walkers And Wellness: Cannabis In The Elderly: As cannabis legalization continues across the United States,EMTs are encountering edible related emergenices with increasing frequency. Unlike smoked cannabis, edibles present unique clinical profile . This course equips EMTs with the pharmacological knowledge and clinical skills, to confidently asses and manage these patients in the field.

The lessons covered are

• Lesson 1: Cannabinoid Ingestion Mechanics & Edible Pathophysiology
• Lesson 2: Polypharmacy & Toxicological Interactions
• Lesson 3: Cardiovascular & Cerebrovascular Alterations
• Lesson 4: BLS Assessment & The Differential Diagnosis Challenge, and,
• Lesson 5: EMT Clinical Management & Operational Decisions

Excerpt from EMT Chapter 26-MCIT-F3-2225 | Weed, Walkers And Wellness: Cannabis In The Elderly

The workers in that liver analogy have a real name. They are the Cytochrome P450 enzyme system, usually shortened to CYP450. This family of enzymes is responsible for breaking down a huge share of the prescription drugs older adults take every day. When they run at normal speed, medications get metabolized on schedule and blood levels stay where the prescriber intended.

Both THC and CBD interfere with this system. That is worth pausing on, because a lot of people assume CBD is the harmless, non-psychoactive part of cannabis. It will not get anyone high, that much is true. But it is highly active at the liver and is actually a potent enzyme inhibitor. So a patient using a CBD only product for arthritis, convinced it is completely benign, may still be quietly disrupting how their other medications are cleared.

Two enzymes matter most for this lesson. CYP3A4 and CYP2C9. Between them, they handle the breakdown of an enormous number of common drugs, including blood thinners, several cardiac medications, and many sedatives. When cannabis inhibits these enzymes, those drugs are cleared more slowly than they should be. And when clearance slows, the drug accumulates. The level in the blood drifts upward with each dose the patient keeps taking on their normal schedule, until a medication that was well controlled crosses into toxic territory. The next several pieces walk through the specific drug pairings where this matters most, and the first one is the category that turns a slow bleed into a real problem.