Category Archives: Chronic Pain

The endocannabinoid system and its therapeutic exploitation.

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“The term ‘endocannabinoid’ – originally coined in the mid-1990s after the discovery of membrane receptors for the psychoactive principle in Cannabis, Delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol and their endogenous ligands – now indicates a whole signalling system that comprises cannabinoid receptors, endogenous ligands and enzymes for ligand biosynthesis and inactivation. This system seems to be involved in an ever-increasing number of pathological conditions. With novel products already being aimed at the pharmaceutical market little more than a decade since the discovery of cannabinoid receptors, the endocannabinoid system seems to hold even more promise for the future development of therapeutic drugs. We explore the conditions under which the potential of targeting the endocannabinoid system might be realized in the years to come.”  http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15340387

http://www.nature.com/nrd/journal/v3/n9/full/nrd1495.html

Using medical marijuana to ease pain

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“NORWICH, Conn. (WTNH) –The 31-year-old Norwich man was arrested for growing marijuana inside his home, but says he was only trying to ease his pain.

Tuesday, a Norwich man was in court facing drug charges. Wednesday, he felt comfortable enough to show News 8 how he uses medical marijuana to ease his pain.

31-year-old Joseph Tamborra says the effects are immediate.

“What is the difference after you take a hit,” asked News 8’s Tina Detelj.

“Uhhh it just takes my nausea completely away. It’s like night and day,” Tamborra said.

Relief from nausea caused by his Crones Disease and the pain from a hip and back injury after a car accident.

“I don’t have any cartilage in my hip,” Tamborra said.

It was too much to take, so he took matters into his own hands growing pot plants in a second floor bedroom of his Norwich home. However, that’s illegal and he was arrested for possession and operating a drug factory.

While his court case continued he received his medical marijuana card in March. A picture shows him after losing 90 pounds, unable to smoke after his arrest and too nauseous to eat.

“That helped me out like tremendously,” he said. “Once they realized okay there’s a reason for him doing this.”

At New London Superior Court Tamborra was ordered to perform community services and the charges will go away, but he’s still faced with a dilemma. He says because the medical marijuana law is so new there’s no process in place for him to buy the medical marijuana.

“Hopefully mid-summer, by the end of the year, they might have a dispensary or two set up,” Tamborra said. “I’ve also heard they might just limit it to pharmacies, I’m not really sure.”

The state says it is still working on how the medical marijuana will be dispensed and who can be a licensed producer.”

-Tina Detelj

http://www.wtnh.com/dpp/news/new_london_cty/using-medical-marijuana-to-ease-pain#.UYu7Dcp48Qs

 

Marijuana’s Medicinal Value Vindicated Once Again, This Time For The Elderly

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Image Credit: Photos.com

Lee Rannals for redOrbit.com – Your Universe Online

“Researchers from Tel Aviv University say that smoking a little marijuana could help provide dramatic relief for the elderly who suffer from a variety of chronic ailments.

The scientists tested the effects of marijuana treatment on 19 residents of the Hadarim nursing home in Israel. During the study, the participants reported dramatic physical results, including healthy weight gain and the reduction of pain and tremors.

According to the study authors, the elderly participants also experienced an immediate improvement in their moods and communication skills after smoking cannabis.

Zach Klein, a graduate of Tel Aviv University’s Department of Film and Television Studies, said that the use of prescription medications was also significantly reduced as a result of using medical marijuana

The active ingredient in marijuana THC was first discovered in Israel by professors Raphael Mechoulam and Yechiel Gaoni. Israel is known as the world leader in medical cannabis research, according to Klein.

During the nursing home study, 19 patents between the ages of 69 and 101 were treated with medical cannabis in the form of powder, oil, vapor or smoke three times daily over the course of a year for conditions like chronic pain, lack of appetite, and muscle spasms and tremors.

Both researchers and nursing home staff members monitored participants for signs of improvement in their conditions as well as their overall quality of life.

Seventeen of the study participants achieved a healthy weight during their use of marijuana and experienced a noticeable reduction in pain, muscle spasms, joint stiffness and tremors. Nearly all of the patients using cannabis slept better, longer and had a reduced incidence of nightmares and flashbacks related to Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

The researchers also reported a decline in the amount of prescribed medications taken by patients, such as antipsychotics, Parkinson’s treatment, mood stabilizers and pain relievers. Towards the end of the study, researchers found that 72 percent of participants were able to reduce their drug intake by an average of 1.7 medications per day.

For the next phase of his research, Klein wants to study the connection between medical cannabis and an improved ability to swallow. Difficulties in swallowing can lead to a decline in nutrition and, ultimately, premature death. He believes that cannabis will have a positive impact on patients suffering from this disorder, which is known in medical jargon as dysphagia.”

http://www.redorbit.com/news/health/1112770306/medical-benefits-of-marijuana-elderly-012413/

Medical cannabis eases pain, improves appetite

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“Medical Cannabis treatment can improve appetite, ease chronic pain, and more, researchers say.

Though controversial, medical cannabis has been gaining ground as a valid therapy, offering relief to suffers of diseases such as cancer, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, ALS and more.

The substance is known to soothe severe pain, increase the appetite, and ease insomnia where other common medications fail.”

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-01-25/health/36547301_1_medical-cannabis-chronic-pain-muscle-spasms

Medical cannabis can improve appetite, ease chronic pain, say researchers

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“Though controversial, medical cannabis has been gaining ground as a valid therapy, offering relief to suffers of diseases such as cancer, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, ALS and more. The substance is known to soothe severe pain, increase the appetite, and ease insomnia  where other common medications fail.

In 2009, Zach Klein, a graduate of Tel Aviv University’s Department of Film and Television Studies, directed the documentary Prescribed Grass. Through the process, he developed an interest in the scientific research behind medical marijuana, and now, as a specialist in policy-making surrounding medical cannabis and an MA student at TAU’s Porter School of Environmental Studies, he is conducting his own research into the benefits of medical cannabis.

Using marijuana from a farm called Tikkun Olam – a reference to the Jewish concept of healing the world – Klein and his fellow researchers tested the impact of the treatment on 19 residents of the Hadarim nursing home in Israel. The results, Klein says, have been outstanding. Not only did participants experience dramatic physical results, including healthy weight gain and the reduction of pain and tremors, but Hadarim staff saw an immediate improvement in the participants’ moods and communication skills. The use of chronic medications was also significantly reduced, he reports.”

Read more: http://www.news-medical.net/news/20130125/Medical-cannabis-can-improve-appetite-ease-chronic-pain-say-researchers.aspx

[Benefits of an add-on treatment with the synthetic cannabinomimetic nabilone on patients with chronic pain–a randomized controlled trial].

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“The aim of this study was to investigate the efficacy and efficiency of an add-on treatment with the synthetic cannabinomimetic nabilone on patients with chronic pain. Of major interest were the evaluation of the influence the treatment had on pain and on quality of life as well as the subjective assessment of positive effects and side effects by the study participants…

CONCLUSION:

In summary, the study results allow the conclusion that a majority of patients with chronic pain classify nabilone intake in addition to the standard treatment as a measure with a positive individual benefit-riskratio. Thus, this kind of treatment may be an interesting and attractive enrichment of analgetic therapy concepts.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16855921

Experience with the synthetic cannabinoid nabilone in chronic noncancer pain.

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“Chronic noncancer pain includes a heterogeneous group of disorders and is often refractory to treatment. Cannabis products have historically been used for chronic pain and are attracting renewed pharmaceutical interest. Nabilone is a synthetic cannabinoid licensed in Canada for the treatment of severe nausea and vomiting associated with cancer chemotherapy. We have used nabilone off-label for the treatment of chronic noncancer pain since 1999. In this article, we review our clinical experience of 20 adult patients with chronic noncancer pain who had been treated with nabilone and followed up for an average of 1.5 years. Prior to nabilone therapy, patients had used a wide range of therapies, including 11 who had used cannabis. Fifteen patients reported subjective overall improvement with nabilone, and nine reported reduced pain intensity. Beneficial effects on sleep and nausea were the main reasons for continuing use. Intolerable side effects were experienced in three patients (palpitations, urinary retention, dry mouth). Nabilone may be a useful addition to pain management and should be further evaluated in randomized controlled trials.”

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16533193

Smoked cannabis proven effective in treating neuropathic pain.

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UC San Diego Health

“Smoked cannabis eased pain induced in healthy volunteers, according to a study by researchers at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) Center for Medical Cannabis Research (CMCR.) However, the researchers found that less may be more.”

“The results, showing a medium-dose (4% THC by weight) of cannabis to be an effective analgesic, converged with results from the CMCR’s first published study, a paper by UCSF researcher Donald Abrams, M.D. published in the journal Neurology in February 2007. In that randomized placebo-controlled trial, patients smoking the same dose of cannabis experienced a 34% reduction in HIV-associated sensory neuropathy pain—twice the rate experienced by patients receiving a placebo.”

““This study helps to build a case that cannabis does have therapeutic value at a medium-dose level,” said Grant. “It also suggests that higher doses aren’t necessarily better in certain situations – something also observed with other medications, such as antidepressants.””

Read more: http://phys.org/news112456382.html

“Smoked Cannabis Proven Effective In Treating Neuropathic Pain”  https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071024141745.htm

“Smoked cannabis proven effective in treating neuropathic pain”  https://medicalxpress.com/news/2007-10-cannabis-proven-effective-neuropathic-pain.html

“Smoked Cannabis Proven Effective in Treating Neuropathic Pain”  https://health.ucsd.edu/news/2007/pages/10-24-medical-cannabis.aspx

Smoked Medical Cannabis May Be Beneficial as Treatment for Chronic Neuropathic Pain, Study Suggests.

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“Medicinal marijuana. A new study provides evidence that cannabis may offer relief to patients suffering from chronic neuropathic pain. (Credit: iStockphoto)”
 

“The medicinal use of cannabis has been debated by clinicians, researchers, legislators and the public at large for many years as an alternative to standard pharmaceutical treatments for pain, which may not always be effective and may have unwanted side effects. A new study by McGill University Health Centre (MUHC) and McGill University researchers provides evidence that cannabis may offer relief to patients suffering from chronic neuropathic pain.”

“This is the first trial to be conducted where patients have been allowed to smoke cannabis at home and to monitor their responses, daily,” says Dr. Mark Ware, lead author of the study, who is also Director of Clinical Research at the Alan Edwards Pain Management Unit at the MUHC and an assistant professor of anesthesia in McGill University’s Faculty of Medicine, and neuroscience researcher at the Research Institute of the MUHC.

In this study, low doses (25mg) of inhaled cannabis containing approximately 10% THC (the active ingredient in cannabis), smoked as a single inhalation using a pipe three times daily over a period of five days, offered modest pain reduction in patients suffering from chronic neuropathic pain (pain associated with nerve injury) within the first few days. The results also suggest that cannabis improved moods and helped patients sleep better. The effects were less pronounced in cannabis strains containing less than 10% THC.

“The patients we followed suffered from pain caused by injuries to the nervous system from post-traumatic (e.g. traffic accidents) or post-surgical (e.g. cut nerves) events, and which was not controlled using standard therapies” explains Dr. Ware. “This kind of pain occurs more frequently than many people recognize, and there are few effective treatments available. For these patients, medical cannabis is sometimes seen as their last hope.”

“This study marks an important step forward because it demonstrates the analgesic effects of cannabis at a low dose over a shot period of time for patients suffering from chronic neuropathic pain,” adds Dr. Ware. The study used herbal cannabis from Prairie Plant Systems (under contract to Health Canada to provide cannabis for research and medical purposes), and a 0% THC ‘placebo’ cannabis from the USA.”

Read more:http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/08/100830094926.htm

Marijuana May Be Effective For Neuropathic Pain.

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“The growing body of evidence that marijuana (cannabis) may be effective as a pain reliever has been expanded with publication of a new study in The Journal of Pain reporting that patients with nerve pain showed reduced pain intensity from smoking marijuana.

Researchers at University of California Davis examined whether marijuana produces analgesia for patients with neuropathic pain. Thirty-eight patients were examined. They were given either high-dose (7%), low-dose (3.5%) or placebo cannabis.

The authors reported that identical levels of analgesia were produced at each cumulative dose level by both concentrations of the agent. As with opioids, cannabis does not rely on a relaxing or tranquilizing effect, but reduces the core component of nociception and the emotional aspect of the pain experience to an equal degree. There were undesirable consequences observed from cannabis smoking, such as feeing high or impaired, but they did not inhibit tolerability or cause anyone to withdraw from the study. In general, side effects and mood changes were inconsequential.

It was noted by the authors that since high and low dose cannabis produced equal analgesic efficacy, a case could be made for testing lower concentrations to determine if the analgesic profile can be maintained while reducing potential cognitive decline.

In addition, the authors said further research could probe whether adding the lowest effective dose of cannabis to another analgesic drug might lead to more effective neuropathic pain treatment for patients who otherwise are treatment-resistant.”

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/06/080626150628.htm