Medical Cannabis in Children.

Posted on February 6, 2020 by David

“The use of medical cannabis in children is rapidly growing.

While robust evidence currently exists only for pure cannabidiol (CBD) to treat specific types of refractory epilepsy, in most cases, artisanal strains of CBD-rich medical cannabis are being used to treat children with various types of refractory epilepsy or irritability associated with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

Other common pediatric disorders that are being considered for cannabis treatment are Tourette syndrome and spasticity.

As recreational cannabis use during youth is associated with serious adverse events and medical cannabis use is believed to have a relatively high placebo effect, decisions to use medical cannabis during childhood and adolescence should be made with caution and based on evidence.

This review summarizes the current evidence for safety, tolerability, and efficacy of medical cannabis in children with epilepsy and in children with ASD. The main risks associated with use of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and CBD in the pediatric population are described, as well as the debate regarding the use of whole-plant extract to retain a possible “entourage effect” as opposed to pure cannabinoids that are more standardized and reproducible.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/32017680

Medical Cannabis for Intractable Epilepsy in Childhood: A Review.

Posted on February 6, 2020 by David

“In recent years, cannabis has been gaining increasing interest in both the medical research and clinical fields, with regard to its therapeutic effects in various disorders. One of the major fields of interest is its role as an anticonvulsant for refractory epilepsy, especially in the pediatric population. This paper presents and discusses the current accumulated knowledge regarding artisanal cannabis and Epidiolex®, a United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved pure cannabidiol (CBD), in epilepsy management in pediatrics, by reviewing the literature and raising debate regarding further research directions.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/32017679

Cannabinoid and Terpenoid Doses are Associated with Adult ADHD Status of Medical Cannabis Patients.

Posted on February 6, 2020 by David

“The aim of this cross-sectional questionnaire-based study was to identify associations between the doses of cannabinoids and terpenes administered, and symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

CONCLUSION:

These findings reveal that the higher-dose consumption of medical cannabis (MC) components (phyto-cannabinoids and terpenes) is associated with ADHD medication reduction.

In addition, high dosage of CBN was associated with a lower ASRS score.

However, more studies are needed in order to fully understand if cannabis and its constituents can be used for management of ADHD.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/32017685

The Highs and Lows of Cannabis in Cancer Treatment and Bone Marrow Transplantation.

Posted on February 6, 2020 by David

“In the last decade, we have observed an increased public and scientific interest in the clinical applications of medical cannabis.

Currently, the application of cannabinoids in cancer patients is mainly due to their analgesic and anti-emetic effects.

The direct effects of phyto-cannabinoids on cancer cells are under intensive research, and the data remain somewhat inconsistent. Although anti-proliferative properties were observed in vitro, conclusive data from animal models and clinical trials are lacking.

Since immunotherapy of malignant diseases and bone marrow transplantation are integral approaches in hemato-oncology, the immuno-modulatory characteristic of cannabinoids is a fundamental aspect for consideration. The effect of cannabinoids on the immune system is presently under investigation, and some evidence for its immuno-regulatory properties has been shown.

In addition, the interaction of cannabinoids and classical cytotoxic agents is a subject for further investigation. Here we discuss the current knowledge of cannabinoid-based treatments in preclinical models and the limited data in oncological patients. Particularly, we address the possible contradiction between the direct anti-tumor and the immune-modulatory effects of cannabinoids.

Better understanding of the mechanism of cannabinoids influence is essential to design therapies that will allow cannabinoids to be incorporated into the clinic.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/32017682

Impact of Cannabinoids on Symptoms of Refractory Gastroparesis: A Single-center Experience.

Posted on January 30, 2020 by David

“Cannabinoids are increasingly used for medicinal purposes, including neuropathy.

Gastroparesis is a neuromuscular disorder and neuropathy plays a large role in its pathogenesis. It is thus reasonable that cannabinoids can serve a beneficial role in the management of gastroparesis.

Our study evaluates the effect of cannabinoids on gastroparesis symptoms.

A significant improvement in the GCSI total symptom composite score was seen with either cannabinoid treatment (mean score difference of 12.8, 95% confidence interval 10.4-15.2; p-value < 0. 001). Patients prescribed marijuana experienced a statistically significant improvement in every GCSI symptom subgroup. Significant improvement in abdominal pain score was also seen with either cannabinoid treatment (mean score difference of 1.6; p-value <0.001).

Conclusions: Cannabinoids dramatically improve the symptoms of gastroparesis. Furthermore, an improvement in abdominal pain with cannabinoids represents a breakthrough for gastroparesis-associated abdominal pain treatment, for which there are currently no validated therapies.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31993268

“In conclusion, cannabinoids dramatically improve refractory gastroparesis symptoms, including abdominal pain. Marijuana may be superior to dronabinol in improving these symptoms, though both cannabinoids seem to be promising as novel therapeutic options in gastroparesis.”

https://www.cureus.com/articles/25832-impact-of-cannabinoids-on-symptoms-of-refractory-gastroparesis-a-single-center-experience

Endocannabinoid system in irritable bowel syndrome and cannabis as a therapy.

Posted on January 29, 2020 by David

Complementary Therapies in Medicine “Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) global burden is underestimated despite its high prevalence. It’s a gastrointestinal disease having obscure pathophysiology with multiple therapies yet unsatisfactory remedies.

The Endocannabinoid system (ECS) of our body plays a key role in maintaining normal physiology of the gastrointestinal tract as well as involves abnormalities including functional diseases like IBS. This review highlights the importance of the Endocannabinoid system, its connections with the normal gastrointestinal functions and abnormalities like IBS.

It also discusses the role of cannabis as medical therapy in IBS patients.

A literature search for articles related to endocannabinoids in IBS and medical cannabis in PubMed and Google Scholar was conducted. The studies highlighted the significant participation of ECS in IBS. However, the breach in obtaining the promising therapeutic model for IBS needed further investigation in ECS and uncover other treatments for IBS.

This review summarizes ECS, highlights the relationship of ECS with IBS and explores cannabis as a potential therapy to treat IBS.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31987224

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0965229919310179?via%3Dihub

The Role of Cannabidiol (CBD) in Chronic Pain Management: An Assessment of Current Evidence.

Posted on January 29, 2020 by David

“Given the growing challenges in chronic pain management coupled with the ongoing consequences of the opioid epidemic, pain management practitioners are looking into more effective, innovative, and safer alternatives to treat pain.

Cannabis-based medicine had been described for hundreds of years but only recently have we seen the more scientific, evidence-based approach to its use, and ongoing investigations continue to explore its potential medical benefits.

While historically more attention has been paid to the psychoactive component of the cannabis plant Δ⁹-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), there have been fewer scientific studies on the medical use of the cannabidiol (CBD) – a non-psychoactive component of the cannabis plant.

RECENT FINDINGS:

By examining recent literature, we investigated the use of CBD and its potential role in pain management. Since there are currently no approved pharmaceutical products that contain CBD alone for the management of pain, this review focused on nabiximols (which is a combined product of THC/CBD in a 1:1 ratio) as the only pharmaceutical product available that contains CBD and is being used for the management of pain.

It is difficult to definitely attribute the therapeutic properties to CBD alone since it is always administered with THC.

Based on the available literature, it is difficult to make a recommendation for the use of CBD in chronic pain management. It is also important to note that there are many CBD products currently available as supplements, but these products are non-pharmaceuticals and lack the appropriate clinical studies to support their efficacy claims.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31980957

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs11916-020-0835-4

A Review on Studies of Marijuana for Alzheimer’s Disease – Focusing on CBD, THC.

Posted on January 25, 2020 by David

book “This study was to discuss the research trend of dementia treatment using cannabis for the purpose of providing the basis of cannabis use for medical purposes in the future.

RESULTS:

These results implied that the CBD components of cannabis might be useful to treat and prevent AD because CBD components could suppress the main causal factors of AD.

Moreover, it was suggested that using CBD and THC together could be more useful than using CBD or THC alone.

CONCLUSION:

We hope that there will be a solid foundation to use cannabis for medical use by continuously evaluating the possibility of using cannabis for clinical purposes as a dementia treatment substance and cannabis can be used as a positive tool.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31970019

“The ideal treatment for Alzheimer’s disease (AD) should be able to modulate the disease through multiple mechanisms rather than targeting a single dysregulated pathway.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25147120

“THC could be a potential therapeutic treatment option for Alzheimer’s disease through multiple functions and pathways.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25024327

“CBD treatment would be in line with preventative, multimodal drug strategies targeting a combination of pathological symptoms, which might be ideal for AD #therapy.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27471947

“Combination of THC and CBD exhibits a better therapeutic profile than each cannabis component alone and support the consideration of a cannabis-based medicine as potential therapy against AD.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25125475

http://www.thctotalhealthcare.com/category/alzheimers-disease-ad/

Source of cannabinoids: what is available, what is used, and where does it come from?

Posted on January 18, 2020 by David

“Cannabis sativa L. is an ancient medicinal plant wherefrom over 120 cannabinoids are extracted. In the past two decades, there has been increasing interest in the therapeutic potential of cannabis-based treatments for neurological disorders such as epilepsy, and there is now evidence for the medical use of cannabis and its effectiveness for a wide range of diseases.

Cannabinoid treatments for pain and spasticity in patients with multiple sclerosis (Nabiximols) have been approved in several countries. Cannabidiol (CBD), in contrast to tetra-hydro-cannabidiol (THC), is not a controlled substance in the European Union, and over the years there has been increasing use of CBD-enriched extracts and pure CBD for seizure disorders, particularly in children. No analytical controls are mandatory for CBD-based products and a pronounced variability in CBD concentrations in commercialized CBD oil preparations has been identified.

Randomized controlled trials of plant-derived CBD for treatment of Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (LGS) and Dravet syndrome (DS) have provided evidence of anti-seizure effects, and in June 2018, CBD was approved by the Food and Drug Administration as an add-on antiepileptic drug for patients two years of age and older with LGS or DS. Medical cannabis, with various ratios of CBD and THC and in different galenic preparations, is licensed in many European countries for several indications, and in July 2019, the European Medicines Agency also granted marketing authorisation for CBD in association with clobazam, for the treatment of seizures associated with LGS or DS.

The purpose of this article is to review the availability of cannabis-based products and cannabinoid-based medicines, together with current regulations regarding indications in Europe (as of July 2019). The lack of approval by the central agencies, as well as social and political influences, have led to significant variation in usage between countries.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31941643

https://www.jle.com/fr/revues/epd/e-docs/source_of_cannabinoids_what_is_available_what_is_used_and_where_does_it_come_from__316043/article.phtml

The Impact of Medical Cannabis on Intermittent and Chronic Opioid Users with Back Pain: How Cannabis Diminished Prescription Opioid Usage

Posted on January 17, 2020 by David

View details for Cannabis and Cannabinoid Research cover image “To determine if cannabis may be used as an alternative or adjunct treatment for intermittent and chronic prescription opioid users.

Design: Retrospective cohort study.

Setting: A single-center cannabis medical practice site in California.

Patients: A total of 180 patients who had a chief complaint of low back pain were identified (International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision, code M54.5). Sixty-one patients who used prescription opioids were analyzed.

Interventions: Cannabis recommendations were provided to patients as a way to mitigate their low back pain.

Outcome Measures: Number of patients who stopped opioids and change in morphine equivalents.

Results: There were no between-group differences based on demographic, experiential, or attitudinal variables. We found that 50.8% were able to stop all opioid usage, which took a median of 6.4 years (IQR=1.75–11 years) after excluding two patients who transitioned off opioids by utilizing opioid agonists. For those 29 patients (47.5%) who did not stop opioids, 9 (31%) were able to reduce opioid use, 3 (10%) held the same baseline, and 17 (59%) increased their usage. Forty-eight percent of patients subjectively felt like cannabis helped them mitigate their opioid intake but this sentiment did not predict who actually stopped opioid usage. There were no variables that predicted who stopped opioids, except that those who used higher doses of cannabis were more likely to stop, which suggests that some patients might be able to stop opioids by using cannabis, particularly those who are dosed at higher levels.

Conclusions: In this long-term observational study, cannabis use worked as an alternative to prescription opioids in just over half of patients with low back pain and as an adjunct to diminish use in some chronic opioid users.”

https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/abs/10.1089/can.2019.0039