Background Cognitive function in people with multiple sclerosis (PwMS) is associated with gender differences and the use of smoked/ingested cannabis. Objective The objective of this report is to explore a possible gender-cannabis interaction associated with cognitive dysfunction in PwMS. Methods A retrospective analysis was undertaken of cognitive data collected from 140 PwMS. A general linear model was conducted to determine gender and cannabis effects on processing speed (SDMT), verbal (CVLT-II) and visual (BVMT-R) memory, and executive functions (D-KEFS), while controlling for age and years of education. Results Cannabis was smoked at least once a month by 33 (23.6%) participants. Cannabis users were more impaired on the SDMT ( p = 0.044). Men, who comprised 30.7% of the entire sample and 42.2% of cannabis users, were more impaired on the CVLT-II (total learning, p = 0.001; delayed recall, p = 0.004). A cannabis-gender interaction was found with the CVLT-II delayed recall ( p = 0.049) and BVMT-R total learning ( p = 0.014), where male cannabis users performed more poorly than female. Conclusion Males with MS may be particularly vulnerable to the cognitive side effects of smoked cannabis use.
An investigation of age related slowing in cognitive processing speed in a mental rotation task.
