Welcome to PICU Doc On Call, A Podcast Dedicated to Current and Aspiring Intensivists.
I'm Pradip Kamat coming to you from Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta/Emory University School of Medicine
and I'm Rahul Damania from Cleveland Clinic Children’s Hospital. We are two Pediatric ICU physicians passionate about all things MED-ED in the PICU. PICU Doc on Call focuses on interesting PICU cases & management in the acute care pediatric setting so let’s get into our episode:
Welcome to our Episode a three-year-old girl with altered mental status and acute respiratory failure
Here's the case presented by Rahul—
A three-year-old presents to the PICU with altered mental status and difficulty breathing.
Per the mother, the patient was in the usual state of health on the day prior to admission when the mother left her in the care of her maternal grandmother. When mom arrived home later in the afternoon, mom was unable to wake her and reported that she seemed "stiff". She did not have any abnormal movements or shaking episodes. Mom called 911 and the patient was brought to our ED. No known head trauma, though the patient is in the care of MGM throughout the day. No emesis. Nhttp://emesis.no/ (o) recent sick symptoms. No witnessed ingestion, however, the patient's mother reports that MGM is on multiple medications (Xarelto, zolpidem, Buspar, gabapentin, and acetaminophen) and uses THC-containing products specifically THC gummies. In the ED: The patient had waxing and waning mentation with decreased respiratory effort. GCS was recorded at 7. Arterial blood gas was performed showing an initial pH of 7.26/61/31/0. The patient was intubated for airway protection in the setting of likely ingestion. The patient has no allergies, immunizations are UTD.
BP 112/52 (67) | Pulse 106 | Temp 36.2 °C (Tympanic) | Resp (!) 14 | Ht 68.5 cm | Wt 14.2 kg | SpO2 100% | BMI 30.26 kg/m²
Physical exam was unremarkable-pupils were 4-5mm and sluggish. There was no rash, no e/o of trauma
Initial CMP was normal with AG of 12, CBC was unremarkable, and Respiratory viral panel was negative. Serum toxicology was negative for acetaminophen, salicylates, and alcohol.
Basic Urine drug screen was positive for THC
To summarize key elements from this case, this patient has:
Altered mental status: - waxing and waning with GCS less than 8 suggestive of decreased ventilatory effort pre-intubation
impending acute respiratory failure
Dilated but reactive pupils
All of which brings up a concern for possible ingestion such as THC (but cannot rule out other ingestion)
This episode will be organized…
Pharmacology of Cannabis
Clinical presentation of Cannabis toxicity
Workup & management of Cannabis toxicity



The Cannabis sativa plant contains over 500 chemical components called cannabinoids, which exert their psychoactive effect on specific receptors in the central nervous system and immune system. The 2 best-described cannabinoids are THC and cannabidiol (CBD)—and are the most commonly used for medical purposes. Patients with intractable epilepsy or chronic cancer pain may be using these drugs. THC is the active ingredient of the cannabis plant that is responsible for most symptoms of central nervous system intoxication. The term cannabis and the common name, marijuana, are often used interchangeably).


Rahul, can you shed some light on the pharmacokinetics/pharmacodynamics of cannabis?
Cannabis exists in various forms: marijuana (dried, crushed flower heads, and leaves), hashish (resin), and hash oil (concentrated resin extract), which can be smoked, inhaled, or ingested. THC is the active ingredient of the cannabis plant that is responsible for most symptoms of central nervous system intoxication, in contrast to CBD, the main non-psychoactive component of cannabis. The potency of cannabis is usually based on the THC content of the preparation. The THC is lipid soluble and highly protein bound and has a volume of distribution of 2.5 to 3.5...