Miami, FL: Many patients suffering from spinal cord injuries acknowledge using cannabis to manage their pain and nearly half report using it in place of opioids, according to survey data published in the journal Frontiers in Pain Research.
Researchers affiliated with the University of Miami surveyed 227 spinal cord patients with a history of cannabis use. Eighty-eight percent reported that cannabis “reduced their neuropathic pain intensity by more than 30 percent.” In addition, 47 percent said that they consumed cannabis in lieu of opioids. Most patients reported that cannabis also played a role in reducing their stress, anxiety, depression, and insomnia.
The study’s authors concluded, “These preliminary results suggest that cannabis and cannabinoids may be effective in reducing neuropathic pain among those with SCI [spinal cord injury] and may help limit the need for certain pain medications.”
The study’s findings are consistent with data published last year in JAMA Network Open reporting that nearly one in three patients with chronic pain use cannabis as an analgesic agent and that many of them substitute it in place of opioids.
Full text of the study, “A preliminary study evaluating self-reported effects of cannabis and cannabinoids on neuropathic pain and pain medication use in people with spinal cord injury,” appears inFrontiers in Pain Research. Additional information on cannabis and chronic pain is available from NORML’s publication, Clinical Applications for Cannabis and Cannabinoids.