Haloperidol For Outpatient Symptom Management in Patients Diagnosed With Cannabinoid Hyperemesis Syndrome in the Emergrency Department

Patients diagnosed with cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome that are safe for discharge from the emergency department will be sent an outpatient prescription for haloperidol to be used as needed at home. The study goal is to see if having this medication available helps to prevent return emergency department visits for recurrent or persistent symptoms.

Study Overview

• Status: Not yet recruiting
• Conditions: Cannabinoid Hyperemesis Syndrome
• Intervention / Treatment: Drug: Haloperidol

Detailed Description

Cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome is a relatively new syndrome characterized by nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain in the setting of excessive cannabis use. This clinical entity has become increasingly prevalent as the concentration of THC has increased in marijuana products over the past several decades. The symptoms have been treated successfully with several medications however the most efficacious appears to be dopamine antagonists such as haloperidol and droperidol. These dopamine antagonists have been used safely and successfully in the inpatient and emergency department settings to decrease the frequency and intensity of nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain in patients suffering from cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome. We plan to evaluate haloperidol, a dopamine antagonist available as an oral formulation, as an option for outpatient management of these symptoms.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Estimated): 100
• Phase: Early Phase 1

Contacts and Locations

• Study Contact: Name: Mason A Bartman, MD; Phone Number: 8178972205; Email: mbartman@uic.edu
• Study Contact Backup: Name: Wesley Eilbert, MD; Phone Number: 6302944225; Email: weilbert@uic.edu

Study Locations

• United States
  • Illinois
    • Chicago, Illinois, United States, 60612
      • University of Illinois Hospital
      • Contact: Mason A Bartman, MD; Phone Number: 8178972205; Email: mbartman@uic.edu
      • Contact: Wesley Eilbert, MD; Phone Number: 6302944225; Email: weilbert@uic.edu
      • Principal Investigator: Mason A Bartman, MD
      • Principal Investigator: Wesley Eilbert, MD
      • Sub-Investigator: Shaveta Khosla, Khosla
      • Sub-Investigator: Drew Posen, PharmD
      • Sub-Investigator: Urvi Dubey, BS

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Adult; Older Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Patients who meet ROME-4 diagnostic criteria for cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome

Exclusion Criteria:

Already on dopamine agonist/antagonist therapy for another condition Parkinson's disease Lewy body dementia Men with QTc > 450 Women with QTc > 460 Patients with documented allergy to haloperidol Patients with known functional prolactinomas Patients who are breastfeeding Patients under the age of 18 Patients who are pregnant Patients who are in the prison system Patients who are unable to consent

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Treatment
• Allocation: N/A
• Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

1

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Patients who will receive haloperidol; Patients in this arm of the study will receive haloperidol to be used as needed on an outpatient basis	Drug: Haloperidol; This intervention involves providing patients an outpatient prescription for as needed haloperidol to attempt to control symptoms of cannabinoid hyperemesis and to attempt to prevent return to the emergency department for that reason.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Rate of return to the emergency department	We plan to measure the percentage of people who return to the emergency department for recurrence of symptoms attributable to cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome	1 month

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Improvement in symptoms	We plan to report patient reported improvement in symptoms attributable to cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome	1 month
Medication side effects	We plan to report the rate of patient reported side effects that are considered attributable to cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome	1 month

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University of Illinois at Chicago
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Wesley Eilbert, MD, University of Illinois Health

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Estimated): November 1, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): January 1, 2028
• Study Completion (Estimated): January 1, 2028

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: July 21, 2026
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: July 21, 2026
• First Posted (Actual): July 24, 2026

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): July 24, 2026
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: July 21, 2026
• Last Verified: July 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: haloperidol; haldol; chs; cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Primary Immunodeficiency Diseases; Mental Disorders; Genetic Diseases, Inborn; Immune System Diseases; Eye Diseases; Leukocyte Disorders; Hematologic Diseases; Immunologic Deficiency Syndromes; Substance-Related Disorders; Chemically-Induced Disorders; Eye Diseases, Hereditary; Phagocyte Bactericidal Dysfunction; Albinism; Marijuana Abuse; Congenital, Hereditary, and Neonatal Diseases and Abnormalities; Hemic and Lymphatic Diseases; Cannabinoid Hyperemesis Syndrome; Chediak-Higashi Syndrome; Organic Chemicals; Butyrophenones; Ketones; Haloperidol
• Other Study ID Numbers: 2026-0693

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO
• IPD Plan Description: We don't need to share IPD with anyone outside of investigators in this clinical trial to complete this trial.

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: Yes
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No
• product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.: No