A federal lawsuit claims the ban on bringing medical marijuana across state lines violates an epileptic girl’s constitutional rights Twelve-year-old Alexis Bortell uses a cannabis oil called Haleigh’s Hope to prevent life-threatening epileptic seizures. She takes the oil orally by syringe twice a day, and always keeps a THC spray on hand in case she…
There are only a handful of medical marijuana or CBD-related clinical trials Recent statements from the Federal Drug Administration Commissioner suggest that the agency may be considering the legitimacy of medical marijuana claims, years after legalization of the herb for medicinal purposes has taken hold in over half of the country. Most specifically, the concern…
Like many people around the globe whose life has been eased due to cannabis, Jessica owes many of her daily pleasures to this plant. Small things that many of us take for granted, she can now enjoy. Even if not for the physiological benefits, her cannabis medication is worth it for the peace of mind it brings. “Putting my Trust in Cannabis was scary at first.
Cannabis is an increasingly sought-after remedy for US children with intractable (biomedically uncontrollable) epilepsy. However, like other complementary-alternative medicine (CAM) modalities, and particularly as a federally illegal, stigmatised substance, it is unsanctioned by mainstream medicine. Parents are largely on their own when it comes to learning about, procuring, dispensing, and monitoring treatments. Exploring how they manage is crucial to better assist them. Implications for understanding the boundaries of science are explored, as are norms for parent agency as ill children’s care managers, radicalisation among people affected by contested illnesses, and the future of ‘medical marijuana.’
Treatment-resistant epilepsy (TRE) affects 30% of epilepsy patients and is associated with severe morbidity and increased mortality. Cannabis-based therapies have been used to treat epilepsy for millennia, but only in the last few years have we begun to collect data from adequately powered placebo-controlled, randomized trials (RCTs) with cannabidiol (CBD), a cannabis derivative. Previously, information was limited to case reports, small series, and surveys reporting on the use of CBD and diverse medical marijuana (MMJ) preparations containing: tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), CBD, and many other cannabinoids in differing combinations. These RCTs have studied the safety and explored the potential efficacy of CBD use in children with Dravet Syndrome (DS) and Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome (LGS).
Epilepsy Action Australia conducted an Australian nationwide online survey seeking opinions on and experiences with the use of cannabis-based products for the treatment of epilepsy. The main reasons for medicinal cannabis use were to manage treatment-resistant epilepsy and to obtain a more favourable side-effect profile compared to standard anti-epileptic drugs. This survey provides an insight into the use of cannabis products for epilepsy, in particular some of the likely factors influencing use, as well as novel insights into the experiences of and attitudes.
Understanding the current state of affairs in the medical cannabis debate requires an examination of the history of medical cannabis use. From ancient Chinese pharmacopeias to the current Phase III trials of pharmaceutical grade cannabidiol, this review covers the time span of cannabis use for epilepsy therapy so as to better assess the issues surrounding the modern medical opinion of cannabis use
As studies continue to reveal favorable findings for the use of cannabidiol in the management of childhood epilepsy syndromes and other disorders, best practices for the large-scale production of Cannabis are needed for timely product development and research purposes. The processes of two institutions with extensive experience in producing large-scale cannabidiol chemotype Cannabis crops-GW Pharmaceuticals and the University of Mississippi-are described, including breeding, indoor and outdoor growing, harvesting, and extraction methods
This article delivers a much needed clinical tests and investigation of plant cannabinoid effects in the epilepsies, and focuses future research in this area on specific, unanswered questions regarding the complexities of endocannabinoid signaling in epilepsy.
Medical cannabis is increasingly used as a treatment or adjunct treatment with different levels of efficacy in several neurological disorders or related symptoms (such as multiple sclerosis, autism, Parkinson and Alzheimer disease, Tourette’s syndrome, Huntington’s disease, neuropathic pain, epilepsy, headache), as well as in other medical conditions (e.g. nausea and vomiting, glaucoma, appetite stimulation, cancer, inflammatory conditions, asthma).