A healthy 21-year-old man had a heart attack after smoking marijuana, and the doctors who treated him believe the drug is what caused his heart attack, according to a new report of this case. 
 
 In fact, experts say that there have been other cases of cardiovascular problems related to smoking pot, and that growing evidence suggests there may be a link between the drug and heart problems. 
 
 The young man at the center of the new case was a regular marijuana and cigarette smoker, according to the case report. He arrived at the emergency department in Wales and said that he had a sharp pain on the left side of his chest that had lasted for 30 minutes. He said the pain started after he played soccer. 
 
 A month prior to this, the man had come to the same department with similar symptoms, also after a game of soccer. However, at that time the doctors at the University Hospital of Wales, in Cardiff, thought the pain was caused by an injury to a muscle. [16 Oddest Medical Case Reports] 
 
 But this time around, the doctors found that the man's cholesterol and triglyceride levels were higher than they should have been, according to the report published in the September issue of The Journal of Emergency Medicine. 
 
 "Although our patient was a cigarette smoker and had elevated lipid levels, cannabis use was identified as the most significant precipitant of his acute coronary syndrome,” (ACS) the researchers wrote in the study. (Acute coronary syndrome is a term used to describe symptoms related to the obstruction of the coronary arteries, which feed the heart muscle itself, which may occur as a result of a heart attack.) 
 
 Marijuana & heart attacks 
 
 Marijuana is not considered to be a common risk factor for heart attacks, but there is evidence suggesting the drug may trigger heart attacks in rare cases, the researchers wrote. They pointed to a 2001 study published in the journal Circulation, where researchers concluded that smoking marijuana increased people's risk of a heart attack 4.8 times in the first hour after smoking it, compared with their baseline risk. 
 
 The doctors noted that the 21-year-old man had previously used cocaine, which is a well-recognized trigger of ACS, but his use of this drug was too far in the past to be the cause of his heart attack, they wrote. 
 
 There have been other reports of heart attacks in young patients who had recently used marijuana, the researchers wrote, citing six such reports in patients ages 19 to 36. 
 
 It is not clear how marijuana may contribute to heart problems, the researchers wrote. 
 
 Experts not involved in the new report said the case adds to the body of literature on marijuana use and cardiovascular problems. 
 
 “It is difficult to establish causality [between heart attack and marijuana use] with just a case report,” said Dr. Sripal Bangalore, an associate professor and interventional cardiologist at the Department of Medicine of NYU Langone Medical Center. 
 
 “Nevertheless, the case report adds to the growing body of evidence about the potential deleterious effects of marijuana use on the heart,” Bangalore said, calling this phenomenon "the pot heart." 
 
 Why are cases popping up now? 
 
 The man's elevated lipids and smoking may have contributed to his heart attack, but it remains very rare for a 21-year-old to have a heart attack, without a strong family history of heart attacks, Bangalore told Live Science. It cannot be determined whether all three factors — elevated lipids, smoking cigarettes and marijuana — played a role, he added. 
 
 "Considering the current state of knowledge in the field of cannabis-related disorders, I think the researchers’ conclusions are relevant,” said Émilie Jouanjus, a medical faculty member at the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Toulouse in France, who was also not involved in the report. The case is consistent with many other cases reported in the scientific literature, she said. 
 
 In her own study published in April in the Journal of the American Heart Association, Jouanjus and her colleagues examined data on health complications following marijuana use gathered between 2006 and 2010 by the French Addictovigilance Network. The researchers found that among the 2,000 cases of reported complications, 35 cases involved heart problems. And among those were 20 people who had heart attacks, including nine who died. 
 
 Cases of heart attacks associated with marijuana use are increasingly recognized, the researchers wrote in the study. [Marijuana vs. Alcohol: Which Is Really Worse for Your Health?] 
 
 Jouanjus agreed with the researchers’ statement, saying that "there was a rise in the number of cases of cannabis-related cardiovascular complications reported in the literature, starting about 20 years ago." 
 
 But the first reported cases date back further — they were described in the late 1960s, she told Live Science. 
 
 Bangalore said the reason why such cases are being increasingly recognized today is likely that doctors are more aware now of the potential deleterious effects of marijuana use. "As the saying goes, the eyes don’t see what the mind doesn’t know." 
 
 Follow Agata Blaszczak-Boxe on Twitter. Follow Live Science @livescience, Facebook & Google+. Original article on Live Science. ||||| Marijuana may be linked with heart problems, according to a new study. 
 
 Pot may not have a chilling-out, calming effect on everyone — evidence is emerging that for some people, smoking marijuana could increase the risk of heart problems, doctors say. 
 
 In a new study, researchers used data from a database called the French Addictovigilance Network, gathered from 2006 to 2010. Of the nearly 2,000 reported complications related to marijuana, the researchers found that 2 percent, or 35 cases, involved heart problems. These cases included 20 people who suffered a heart attack, and nine who died. 
 
 Researchers found most patients were men, with an average age of about 34. Regular marijuana users with a family history of heart disease had an increased risk of heart disease, according to the study, published today (April 23) in the Journal of the American Heart Association. 
 
 Many of the patients also had other risk factors for heart disease, such as smoking tobacco and drinking alcohol, the researchers noted. Nevertheless, nearly half of the patients were regular users of only marijuana. 
 
 Researchers also found a small increase in heart problems over time. In 2006, only 1.1 percent of the reported complications were heart related, but that rate increased to 3.6 percent in 2010. [Marijuana: 5 Surprising Facts About Pot] 
 
 "The general public thinks marijuana is harmless, but information revealing the potential health dangers of marijuana use needs to be disseminated to the public, policymakers and health care providers," said study researcher Émilie Jouanjus, a medical faculty member at the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Toulouse in France. 
 
 Considering 1.2 million people in France use marijuana regularly, the number of reported complications may seem small. The researchers said, however, that the surveillance system may miss many drug-related complications. 
 
 This type of study cannot demonstrate a cause-and-effect relationship between marijuana and heart problems, but the findings underscore the need for more research on this topic, experts said. 
 
 "The study is very small and has many limitations, but it is a warning sign," said Dr. Suzanne Steinbaum, a cardiologist and the director of Women's Heart Health of Lenox Hill Hospital in New York. 
 
 "The perception is that marijuana is a magical drug, that it's totally safe, and we can use it in medical treatment. What we don't know about are the negative effects, the potential harms," said Steinbaum, who is also an op-ed contributor to Live Science. 
 
 Several previous reports have linked marijuana use with serious heart problems. In one study involving nearly 4,000 patients, researchers found that people's risk of heart attacks increased five times in the first hour after marijuana use. This five-fold increase in risk is a little higher than the risk for sex, about the same as that for intense exercise, and much less than the risk caused by cocaine, which increases one's chance of having a heart attack 25-fold, the researchers told reporters last year. 
 
 Previous studies have also suggested marijuana use could increase heart rateand blood pressure, and reduce the blood's ability to carry oxygen, which may contribute to the higher risk for heart attacks. 
 
 Altogether, the new findings and evidence from previous studies suggest that, like any other drug, marijuana has its own share of risks. 
 
 "There is clear clinical evidence to suggest a therapeutic beneﬁt of inhaled marijuana for the management of a number of chronic, debilitating conditions. However, clinical evidence also suggests the potential for serious cardiovascular risks associated with marijuana use, including myocardial infarction, serious cardiac arrhythmias, stroke and even death," Dr. Shereif Rezkalla, a cardiologist at the Marshﬁeld Clinic, in Marshﬁeld, Wisc., wrote in an editorial accompanying the new study. 
 
 Email Bahar Gholipour. Follow LiveScience @livescience, Facebook & Google+. Originally published on LiveScience. ||||| Study Highlights 
 
 Marijuana use may result in heart-related complications in young and middle-aged adults. 
 
 Nearly 2 percent of the health complications from marijuana use reported were cardiovascular related. 
 
 A quarter of these complications resulted in death, according to a French study. 
 
 Embargoed until 3 p.m. CT / 4 p.m. ET WEDNESDAY, APRIL 23, 2014 
 
 DALLAS, April 23, 2014 — Marijuana use may result in cardiovascular-related complications — even death — among young and middle-aged adults, according to a French study reported in the Journal of the American Heart Association. 
 
 “In prior research, we identified several remarkable cases of cardiovascular complications as the reasons for hospital admission of young marijuana users,” said Émilie Jouanjus, Pharm.D., Ph.D., lead author of the study and a medical faculty member at the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Toulouse in Toulouse, France. “This unexpected finding deserved to be further analyzed, especially given that the medicinal use of marijuana has become more prevalent and some governments are legalizing its use.” 
 
 Researchers analyzed serious cardiovascular-related complications following marijuana use that was reported to the French Addictovigilance Network in 2006-10. They identified 35 cases of cardiovascular and vascular conditions related to the heart, brain and limbs. 
 
 Among their findings: 
 
 Most of the patients were male, average age 34.3 years. 
 
 Nearly 2 percent (35 of the 1,979) marijuana-related complications were cardiovascular complications. 
 
 Of the 35 cases, 22 were heart-related, including 20 heart attacks; 10 were peripheral with diseases related to arteries in the limbs; and three were related to the brain’s arteries. 
 
 The percentage of reported cardiovascular complications more than tripled from 2006 to 2010. 
 
 Nine patients, or 25.6 percent, died. 
 
 Researchers note that marijuana use and any resulting health complications are likely underreported. There are 1.2 million regular users in France, and thus potentially a large amount of complications that are not detected by the French Addictovigilance System. 
 
 “The general public thinks marijuana is harmless, but information revealing the potential health dangers of marijuana use needs to be disseminated to the public, policymakers and healthcare providers,” Jouanjus said. 
 
 People with pre-existing cardiovascular weaknesses appear to be more prone to the harmful effects of marijuana. 
 
 “There is now compelling evidence on the growing risk of marijuana-associated adverse cardiovascular effects, especially in young people,” Jouanjus said. “It is therefore important that doctors, including cardiologists, be aware of this, and consider marijuana use as one of the potential causes in patients with cardiovascular disorders.” 
 
 Surveillance of marijuana-related reports of cardiovascular disorders should continue and more research needs to look at how marijuana use might trigger cardiovascular events, she said. 
 
 Co-authors are Maryse Lapeyre-Mestre, M.D., Ph.D., and Joelle Micallef, M.D., Ph.D. There are no author disclosures. 
 
 The study was funded by French InterMinisterial mission for the fight against drugs and addiction, MILDT (Mission interministérielle de lutte contre les drogues et toxicomanies) and the French drug agency ANSM (Agence Nationale de Sécurité des Médicaments). 
 
 Additional Resources: 
 
 For more information on this subject view the AHA Heart Blog post: States move forward with marijuana legalization despite lack of research . 
 
 . infographic available on the right column of the release link http://newsroom.heart.org/news/marijuana-use-may-increase-heart-complications-in-young-middle-aged-adults?preview=b7b428026ac982ed55d512c1ad0f62fe. 
 
 Follow AHA/ASA news on Twitter @HeartNews. 
 
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– Where there's smoke, there's usually fire—and when it comes to marijuana smoke, scientists are once again fanning the embers of a long-suspected theory that the drug is linked to cardiovascular issues. According to a case study published last month in the Journal of Emergency Medicine, a 21-year-old man who was a regular pot user suffered a heart attack—and doctors identified cannabis "as the most significant precipitant of his acute coronary syndrome," LiveScience reports. It's not the first time marijuana has been tied to heart problems. Reportedly, the first documented link between the two was shown in 2000, when a Boston study indicated that a middle-aged person's risk of having a heart attack rose five times in the first hour after lighting up, the New York Times reported that year. And earlier this year, a French study cited by LiveScience noted that of 2,000 reported marijuana complications, 2% of them were heart issues (including nine people who died). But a cause-and-effect relationship has yet to be established: Even in the recent case study, researchers admit the man's high cholesterol and cigarette smoking may have also played a role in causing his heart attack. But a cardiologist at NYU's Langone Medical Center tells LiveScience that "the case report adds to the growing body of evidence about the potential deleterious effects of marijuana use on the heart." (Pot was recently implicated in the deaths of two young men who died of complications from heart arrhythmias.)