Your Health

Clinical Trials

There has been relatively little research done on medical marihuana in comparison with other pharmaceuticals and thus many of marihuana’s beneficial effects are from anecdotal reports. In order to provide the best treatment for our clients’ ailments, we are beginning clinical trials. Clinical trials will help us isolate which active ingredients in marihuana work best for specific illnesses. Our aim is to improve the quality, efficacy and safety of our product, and in doing so achieve superior regulatory approval. Below are a number of ailments whose symptoms can be treated with medical marihuana. When the clinical trials are complete, we will have more information on how the compounds in marihuana effect each ailment.

 

Ailments

Acute or Chronic Pain
Almost all analgesic (pain-relieving) medication has limited efficacy for some types of pain. Medical marihuana is particularly useful because it has a broad spectrum of efficacy and a unique set of side effects. Also, many effects that were once thought of as merely side effects are now considered beneficial for pain management.  Marihuana is particularly useful for patients who have developed tolerance to opiates. Opiates, such as codeine and morphine, are commonly used to treat acute pain, but they are not consistently effective when treating chronic pain. Most opiates can also induce nausea. Marihuana is not only beneficial in treating nausea and pain, but also there has been recent research pointing to how marihuana cannabinoids act on pathways in the brain that overlap with those activated by opiates, but through pharmacologically distinct mechanisms (source: Marijuana and Medicine: Assessing the Science Base; Institute of Medicine, 1999. page 140). This means that marihuana has a different side effects but has additive or synergistic pain relieving qualities.

AIDS
Many AIDS patients experience the involuntary loss of body weight because of diarrhea, fever, mouth or throat infections, ulcers, or adverse effects of medications. Marihuana can be used as an appetite stimulant and to combat nausea for the treatment of AIDS-related weight loss.

Alzheimer’s
Alzheimer's is a degenerative disease that causes a progressive decline in brain function, and it specifically affects memory.  Many people with Alzheimer's disease develop problems, such as agitation, depression, or aggression. Depending on the specific behavior or mood problems that a patient experiences, medical marihuana can be used to treat many of those symptoms. Food refusal especially is a common problem in patients who suffer from Alzheimer's, and marihuana can be helpful with weight gain.

Arthritis
See acute or chronic pain.

Cancer
For patients undergoing chemotherapy, and who simultaneously experience severe pain, nausea, and appetite loss, marihuana offers a broad-spectrum of relief not found in any other single medication. Though smoking marihuana allows THC and other cannabinoids to affect the body, it also has many harmful substances, including most of those found in tobacco smoke.  While some patients ingest marihuana orally instead of smoking it, patients with severe vomiting may not be able to keep the medication down long enough for it to take effect. Another option for patients who do not want to smoke marihuana is inhalation using a vaporizer.

Glaucoma
The eye's rigid shape is normally maintained in part by IOP (intraocular pressure). Since a high IOP is the only known major risk factor for glaucoma that can be controlled, most treatments are designed to reduce IOP. Marihuana can reduce IOP when taken orally or by inhalation, but not when administered topically. Yet, though a reduction in IOP slows the rate of glaucoma symptom progression, there is no direct evidence of benefits of marihuana in the natural progression of glaucoma. Also, the reduction only lasts for a few hours, and it is not known how marihuana interacts with other drugs used to treat glaucoma.

Sleep Disorders
Marihuana can be prescribed as a sleep aid. Indica dominant marihuana strains have a sedative effect.

Multiple Sclerosis
Marihuana can be used to treat symptoms associated with MS, specifically in order to relieve muscle spasticity. The spasms occurring at night can be particularly disruptive to sleep. An Indica dominant strain can be helpful for night time pain management, when the sedative side effect would be beneficial. For patients who develop a sudden onset of intense muscle spasms, a fast acting inhaled form of marihuana might be effective.

Spasticity: Cannabinoid receptors are particularly abundant in areas of the brain that control movement and the cannabinoids in marihuana affect movement and posture. It appears that the cannabinoids in marihuana have anti-spastic effects; however, there has not been enough research to conclusively show how marihuana affects spasticity.

Spinal Cord Injury
Marihuana can reduce muscle spasms, nausea, and the frequency of sleepless nights for patients suffering from spinal cord injury.

Spasticity: Cannabinoid receptors are particularly abundant in areas of the brain that control movement and the cannabinoids in marihuana affect movement and posture. It appears that the cannabinoids in marihuana have anti-spastic effects; however, there has not been enough research to conclusively show how marihuana affects spasticity.

Epilepsy
There are individual case reports in which marihuana appears to control seizures in people with epilepsy (source: reviewed in the 1997 British Medical Association report; 13), but as of yet there is no solid evidence.

For more information on these and other ailments, read Health Canada’s Information on Purported Indications and Clinical Use of Medical Marihuana.  http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/dhp-mps/marihuana/how-comment/medpract/infoprof/indications-eng.php