By GreenMedInfo Research Group www.greenmedinfo.com
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UFFERERS OF CHRONIC pain have been faced with a perilous decision—risk a crippling addiction to opioids or find a way to live with the pain. A new clinical study has focused on medical cannabis as an alternative to opioids, and the results may be a turning point towards a safe, plant-based option for easing pain. A new study (https://www.ncbi.nlm. nih.gov/pubmed/29398248) published in the European Journal of Internal Medicine represents hope for millions of sufferers of chronic pain. Researchers at the Cannabis Clinical Research Institute at Soroka University Medical Center, and Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU), found that medical cannabis can significantly reduce chronic pain without adverse effects, particularly among adults aged 65 and older. Use of cannabis, aka medical marijuana, was found to be both safe and effective for elderly patients experiencing pain because of another medical condition, such as cancer, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, and post-traumatic stress disorder. One of the head researchers in this study, Prof. Victor Novack, M.D., is a professor of medicine in the BGU Faculty of Health Sciences (FOHS), as well as BGU’s Chair in Internal Medicine. He also heads the Soroka Cannabis Clinical Research Institute. According to Prof. Novack, M.D.: “Older patients represent a large and growing population of medical cannabis users, [yet] few studies have addressed how it affects this particular group, which also suffers from dementia, frequent falls, mobility problems, and hearing and visual impairments.”[1] The study surveyed 2,736 patients aged
Medical Cannabis Superior to Opioids for Chronic Pain, Study Finds
65 years and older, at the inception of medical cannabis treatment, and throughout the 33-month study period. Surveys indicated the most common reasons for using cannabis were pain (66.6%) and cancer (60.8%). Methods of ingestion included cannabisinfused oils and smoking or vaporizing the herb. After six months of cannabis therapy, researchers provided a follow-up questionnaire, which sought to determine any changes to pain intensity and quality of life, as well as any adverse events that were experienced. 901 of the original respondents replied. After 6-months of medical marijuana treatment (all statistics are +/-): n 94% reported an improved overall condition, and a 50% reduction in pain
n 60% reported improved quality of life, from “bad” or “very bad” to “good” or “very good” n 70% reported moderate to significant improvement in their condition n 20% of respondents stopped using opioids or reduced their dose Notably, the most common side effects reported were mild: dizziness (9.7%) and dry mouth (7.1%), a far cry from the highpercentage of opioid-related deaths that are linked to chronic pain. [2] BGU researchers believe that utilizing cannabis may decrease the use of other prescription medications, including opioids, and encourage further research into this plant-based alternative, especially as it relates to an aging population.
Please see MEDICAL CANNABIS, page 22
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Chronic pain is a problem that affects an estimated 100 million Americans. [3] It is also one of the most significant public health problems in the United States, with an estimated cost to society of $560-$635 billion annually, an amount equal to about $2,000 for every person living in the U.S. [4] Meanwhile, the nation’s growing opioid epidemic sees 1 of every 550 chronic opioid users dying within three years of their first opioid prescription. [5] While natural alternatives to deadly opiates are rarely offered by medical doctors, medical marijuana may be the drug that bridges this senseless gap. Research is beginning to mount that shows more promise than the medical establishment can long ignore. Neuropathy is a type of chronic pain that presents as tingling and numbness in the hands and feet, often due to nerve damage from complications of cancer or diabetes, among other causes. A 2017 meta-analysis of prior studies on neuropathy found that cannabis, particularly selected isolates called cannabinoids, can provide analgesic benefit in patients with chronic neuropathy. Cannabis can also be used as an adjunct to other pain therapies, potentially lowering the amount of dangerous synthetic medication that is required to relieve pain. A recent study on the Opioid-Sparing Effect of Cannabinoids found that when cannabinoids were administered with opioids, specifically morphine, nearly four times less morphine was needed to achieve the same analgesic effect. This presents further evidence for cannabis as a means of reducing cases of opiate dependency and death. While the politics of cannabis are exceedingly complex, the truth of this
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