Research Shows Sustained Improvements In Chronic Pain Patients Who Use Cannabis

BOSTON – The long-term use of cannabis provides sustained improvements in patients suffering from chronic pain conditions, according to longitudinal data published in the journal Experimental and Clinical Psychopharmacology.

A new study: “No pain, all gain? Researchers from Harvard Medical School and McLean Hospital in Boston examined medical cannabis use in chronic pain patients, most of whom had either musculoskeletal pain or neuropathy.

The study showed a sustained improvement in the participants’ symptoms.

“Relative to baseline, following 3 and 6 months of treatment, medical Cannabis patients exhibited improvements in pain which were accompanied by improved sleep, mood, anxiety, and quality of life, and stable conventional medication use,” the researchers wrote.

The researchers wrapped up saying: “Findings suggest that medical cannabis may be an effective adjunctive therapeutic strategy for chronic pain and related symptoms for at least a subset of patients. Future studies are needed to gather data which could ultimately help physicians make specific recommendations regarding MC treatment regimens optimized for pain relief.”

Chronic pain, is one of the main reasons people seek help with Cannabis, according to an analysis published in February in the Journal of Cannabis Research.

Full text of the study, “No pain, all gain? Interim analysis from a longitudinal, observational study examining the impact of medical cannabis treatment on chronic pain and related symptoms,” appears in Experimental and Clinical Psychopharmacology. Additional information regarding cannabinoids and chronic pain is available from NORML.

Reporting here was sourced from NORML, a leading advocacy group in cannabis. (Image: Shutterstock).