Detection of Δ9-Tetrahydrocannabinol Impairment Using Resting-State Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy

Can a portable neuroimaging method (functional near-infrared spectroscopy [fNIRS]) improve detection of impairment due to ∆9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC)–induced intoxication over current benchmark behavioral assessments?In this crossover trial of 183 adults who received doses of THC and/or placebo, 6-minute fNIRS measurements of resting prefrontal cortex activity identified THC impairment with superior accuracy compared with 45-minute expanded field sobriety tests and with comparable accuracy to fNIRS measurements conducted during attention task performance.These findings suggest that portable fNIRS neuroimaging provides more objective, accurate, and rapid detection of THC-induced impairment than conventional field sobriety methods, offering significant advantages for cannabis impairment detection in roadside, workplace, and research settings.

Corresponding Authors: Jodi M. Gilman, PhD, Center for Addiction Medicine, Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 101 Merrimac St, Boston, MA 02114 (jgilman1@mgh.harvard.edu); Nisan Ozana, PhD, Faculty of Engineering, Institute of Nanotechnology and Advanced Materials, The Gonda Multidisciplinary Brain Research Center, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel (nisan.ozana@biu.ac.il).

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