A strange and painful condition known as “scromiting” is rising sharply in the United States, alarming doctors, hospitals, and public health experts. The medical name is cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome (CHS), and it involves severe abdominal pain, relentless nausea, and violent vomiting. In the worst cases, patients scream in agony while throwing up, which is how the term “scromiting” was born.
What Is Scromiting and Who Is Tracking It?
Scromiting is tied to chronic and heavy cannabis use. Patients often show up in emergency rooms writhing in pain, vomiting repeatedly for hours, and desperately seeking relief. Doctors report that many sufferers try taking extremely hot showers before coming to the hospital because the heat temporarily eases the pain.
Researchers, physicians, and public health organizations are now studying CHS more closely than ever. Multiple studies published in JAMA Network Open and reviewed by physicians like Dr. Gautham Oroskar, Dr. John Dumot, Dr. Sam Wang, and Dr. Michael Gottlieb provide key insight into how frequently this condition now appears in U.S. emergency rooms. Recent national data reviewed more than 806 million ER visits to understand how widespread the problem has become.
Scromiting Trending Up?
The rise has been dramatic. Between 2016 and 2022, CHS visits to emergency rooms surged more than 650 percent. In 2016, there were about 4.4 CHS cases per 100,000 emergency visits. By 2020, the peak had shot up to 33.1 per 100,000 visits. Even after a slight decline, cases remained high at roughly 22 cases per 100,000 visits in 2022.
Researchers found that young adults are at the highest risk. Those aged 18 to 25 were more than 260 percent more likely to develop CHS than other age groups, and people aged 26 to 35 were also at significantly higher risk. Men appear to be affected slightly more than women, although some studies also show women experiencing high ER visit rates. CHS is seen most often in the West and Northeast, where cannabis use and legalization are more common.
Doctors believe that greater access to marijuana, rising legalization, and especially today’s much higher THC potency are driving the problem. Earlier cannabis typically contained around 4 to 5 percent THC, while modern products often range from 15 to 20 percent or even higher. Some experts believe this increase is a key reason for the explosion in CHS cases.
What Causes It and Why Does It Happen?
Scientists still do not know exactly why cannabis causes this severe vomiting disorder. The condition appears primarily in heavy, long-term marijuana users. The longer the use and the higher the dose of THC, the higher the risk. The disorder builds gradually, often starting with morning nausea or stomach pain, then developing into frightening cycles of nonstop vomiting that can last days.
Doctors describe the condition as “paradoxical” because cannabis is often used to treat nausea in cancer patients, yet in chronic users it can cause extreme nausea and vomiting. Some believe THC may interfere with the brain’s cannabinoid receptors over time. Others point to rising cannabis strength. Not everyone who uses marijuana develops CHS, and researchers are still trying to learn why certain users are more vulnerable.
Emergency departments across the country are seeing patients over and over again with the same condition. Some adolescents have been hospitalized five times in just two months. Because CHS can look like other stomach illnesses, many patients are misdiagnosed. They often undergo repeated blood tests, CT scans, endoscopies, and other expensive procedures before doctors finally identify the real problem.
If untreated, scromiting can be dangerous and even life-threatening. Severe vomiting can cause dehydration, major electrolyte imbalances, shock, and organ failure. Doctors warn that anyone experiencing nonstop vomiting should seek immediate medical care.
Treatment and Recovery
Doctors agree that the only true cure is to stop using cannabis. Symptoms disappear when marijuana use stops and return when use begins again. However, quitting is not always easy because withdrawal can include anxiety, irritability, insomnia, and cravings.
Traditional nausea medications often fail to help. Some doctors report success using olanzapine, an antipsychotic medication. Others use capsaicin cream applied to the abdomen. Patients are typically treated with IV fluids while doctors rule out other health threats.
Because of the rising number of cases, CHS now has an official U.S. and World Health Organization diagnosis code, which will allow researchers to track it more accurately going forward.
Doctors across the country say the condition is real, serious, and more common than people think. Dr. Oroskar called CHS “one of the leading causes of recurrent nausea and vomiting in young adults.” Dr. Wang described teens arriving at hospitals vomiting uncontrollably and begging for relief. He also warned that if ignored too long, CHS can become truly life-threatening.
At the same time, researchers note that increased awareness may partly explain the rise in diagnoses, since the medical community now recognizes CHS more readily. Some say earlier years may have seen cases that were simply missed or mislabeled.
Scromiting remains rare compared to overall cannabis use, but it is rising at a concerning rate. With stronger marijuana, wider legalization, vaping trends, and increased youth exposure, experts believe doctors and the public must pay closer attention. Researchers stress the need for awareness, accurate diagnosis, and honest conversations about the risks of heavy THC use.
The message from physicians is clear. For a small but rapidly growing number of users, cannabis is not harmless. For those who develop CHS, it can turn into one of the most painful and frightening medical emergencies of their lives.
HNZ Editor: Let’s see, severe abdominal pains with vomiting, long term mental decline and lethargy? Might want to steer your children away from this
