Most of these emergency department visits involve young males
From 2010 to 2011 the number of emergency department visits involving synthetic cannabinoids – so-called “synthetic marijuana” – more than doubled. Visits rose from 11,406 in 2010 to 28,531 in 2011, according to a new report by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). Synthetic cannabinoids are substances that are not derived from the marijuana plant but purport to have the same effect as the marijuana.