Structural and Functional Imaging Studies in Chronic Cannabis Users: A Systematic Review of Adolescent and Adult Findings
Albert Batalla1,2,3, Sagnik Bhattacharyya4, Murat Yu ̈cel3, Paolo Fusar-Poli4, Jose Alexandre Crippa5,6, Santiago Nogue ́7, Marta Torrens8,9, Jesu ́s Pujol10, Magı ́ Farre ́8,9, Rocio Martin-Santos1,2,6*
Cannabis is the illicit drug most widely available and used worldwide [1,2], consumed by between 125 and 203 million people, largely younger age group (15–34 years), which corre- sponds to an annual prevalence rate of 2.8%–4.5% [1,2]. Despite the fact that many individuals tend to discontinue cannabis use after their initial experimentation with the drug [1] and the percentage of individuals who develop dependence is lower than that associated with alcohol (15%) or tobacco (32%) use, around 9% of cannabis users develop dependence in the long term [3,4].
