As more people are getting interested in the use of cannabis, researchers are looking more into the different benefits of the products. Researchers have started to find that there are a number of benefits that it offers for ailments. Researchers have found that cannabis can help with fibromyalgia, organ damage, and Tourette’s Syndrome.  The most commonly found benefit is that it can help with all manner of pain, like lower back and musculoskeletal. On Oct. 8, researchers published a study showing the effect of cannabis on neuropathic pain.

Description

For those unfamiliar with the term, neuropathic pain is a condition that is usually chronic. Researchers found chronic, progressive nerve disease usually causes this condition. However, it can also occur as a result of injury or infection. The causes range from multiple sclerosis to shingles to carpal tunnel syndrome. In a 2014 study, researchers estimated that as many as 10 percent of Americans experience it in some form or another.

Study

For this study about the effects of cannabis on neuropathic pain, the researchers performed a nationwide register-based study in Denmark. They identified all individuals who redeemed at least one prescription for cannabis-based medicines or medical cannabis. Researchers chose these individuals because the patients used these prescriptions for either neuropathic pain or other, unspecified pain disorders. They then matched one control to each case.

Results

Among the patients with neuropathic pain, the researchers found that the users of CBD, THC, or a combination of them used less gabapentine, an anti-epilepsy medicine that also helps with nerve pain, than the controls. These same groups were hospitalized for fewer days than controls among neuropathic pain patients. However, this was not the case for patients with other or unspecified pain disorders.

Discussion

The researchers found that the use of cannabis medications were generally safe. They also found that the medications displayed positive effects among patients with neuropathic pain. The researchers found that these medications were both safe and efficient for those suffering from neuropathic pain. This goes along with other articles that have similarly found cannabis’s effect on pain and epilepsy. It is the hope of activists that studies like these will help to prove the benefits of cannabis and push more towards legalization.

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