Norfolk, VA: Patients authorized to consume state-legal medicinal cannabis products report improvements in their health-related quality of life and less reliance on prescription medications, according to data published in The Journal for Nurse Practitioners.
Researchers affiliated with Old Dominion University in Virginia surveyed 31 patients enrolled in the state’s medical cannabis program. Study participants all resided in rural Virginia.
Consistent with other studies, researchers reported: “[Patients’] health and well-being improved significantly after medical cannabis was added to the treatment regimen. Prescription medication use decreased significantly. Quality of life and symptom intensity improved significantly.”
The study’s authors concluded, “Medical cannabis should be considered an alternative treatment for patients who suffer from anxiety, depression, insomnia, or chronic pain.”
Longitudinal data published last year in the journal Cannabis and Cannabinoid Research reported that patients experience sustained improvements in pain, anxiety, and mood following the use of medical cannabis. According to a 2023 study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, nearly one in four pain patients residing in states where medical cannabis access is legal self-identify as marijuana consumers.
Full text of the study, “Medical cannabis use and quality of life among Appalachian adults,” appears in The Journal for Nurse Practitioners. Additional information is available from the NORML Fact Sheet, ‘Relationship Between Marijuana and Opioids.’