Cyclic Hyperemesis Secondary to Chronic Consumption of Cannabis A Reconceptualization of Psychogenic Vomiting

Vomiting is a complex mechanism that occurs in so many disorders and can be triggered by different stimuli and physiopathologic circumstances. The term psychogenic is used since 19th century and is referred to those vomits that are spontaneous and involuntary, without an organic apparent cause. Those seemed to be associated to alterations and psychologic mechanism as hysteria and somatization disorders or similar. Otherwise, other disorders with different etiology or pathophysiology have been included under this term. One of those is the syndrome of cyclical vomiting, which seems a different identity with recent research on its relationship to chronic use of cannabis. In this study is shown a case with recurrent and inexplicable vomiting in a can nabis daily user and the diagnostic hypothesis derived from it. Finally, an explicative model has been constructed, on the basis of a classic conditioning process-mirror effect-which allows an explanation for the relationship of habitual consumption of cannabis and vomiting.