17 November 2022

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ADA leader: More of my patients are disclosing marijuana use

Half of dentists surveyed say patients are high at appointments

Mary Guiden

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Dr. Tricia Quartey, a general dentist and spokeswoman for the American Dental Association (ADA), said a recent survey that found more than half of dentists reported patients arriving for appointments high on marijuana mirror what she’s experienced.

Quartey, a dentist and chief executive officer at Noble Dental Care, P.C. in Brooklyn, New York, said that she was not surprised to see the ADA survey’s results.

“Considering the legalization of marijuana in many states I was not surprised,” she said in an interview with Dentistry33.

The survey was sent to 1,576 members of the ADA’s member research panel in March 2022. The response rate was 35%; some 557 dentists completed the survey. The ADA has 161,000 members.

An additional consumer survey conducted by an external partner found that 67% of 1,0006 people who responded said that they are comfortable talking to their dentist about marijuana. The ADA recommends dentists discuss marijuana use while reviewing health history during dental visits.

Quartey said that people might be embarrassed about disclosing recreational drug use. But in her own practice, more patients are disclosing marijuana use. In some cases, they believe it will make them less anxious during the appointment.

“I’m not sure if use has increased per se but at least now they’re being honest with me,” she said.  

Recreational marijuana use was legalized for adults in New York in March 2021.

Dental appointments rescheduled

When patients disclose that they’ve used marijuana and are high, Quartey said that she and her team typically must reschedule the appointment.

Informed consent is a concern if a patient is under the influence, she said. And a rescheduled appointment means additional financial costs for the patient and lost chair time for the clinician and team.

“It definitely has had a financial impact,” said Quartey. “I have had to postpone visits where I blocked out hours of time. I personally don’t charge a fee if we reschedule a visit. But that’s within the rights of the dentist.”

Paul Armento, deputy director of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), said that he is “dubious of the claim that dental patients are frequently showing up to appointments under the influence of cannabis.”

Citing a 2021 Gallup poll, Armento said just over one in 10 adults acknowledge being current consumers of cannabis. “It seems implausible that over half of dentists would have confirmed experiences with patients under the influence,” he said.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported in 2019 that 48.2 million people, or about 18% of Americans, used marijuana at least once in 2019.

Quartey said her advice for dental colleagues is to “dig deeper about marijuana use” when discussing patients’ medical history.  

At that time, advise your patient what can happen if they do use marijuana just prior to an appointment, she said. There have been times when she did not specifically say “do not use marijuana prior to your visit” and she wishes that she had done that.

Otherwise, patients may “think it’s fine or won’t be an issue,” she said. The ADA has called for additional research around marijuana and oral health and will continue to monitor scientific evidence to provide clinical recommendations for dentists and patients.

Read more about the recent ADA survey on the association’s website.

Voters in Maryland and Missouri voted in favor of ballot measures legalizing the adult-use of cannabis in the recent mid-term elections. Read more about recent election results on NORML’s site.