Cannabis Use Does Not Predict Relief in Patients With Chronic Pain
A recent study found that edible or smoked cannabis use predicted little variability in pain relief.
Cannabis does not predict pain relief in natural environments among patients with chronic pain who report consistently using the drug, according to recent research data. Authors of the study said future research should look at potential placebo effects and other psychological processes involved in pain relief perception.
Cannabis Use Does Not Predict Relief in Patients With Chronic Pain / roxxyphotos - stock.adobe.com
As more health care providers seek alternative pain management therapies to opioids, cannabis has emerged as a potential therapeutic option. Research has shown that cannabis can be just as effective as opioids, while also providing other benefits such as improved emotion, functionality, and overall sense of wellbeing.1 However, there has been a lack of data on the effectiveness of cannabis in natural environments.
READ MORE: Cannabis Could Help Reduce Opioid Use in Patients with Chronic Pain
A team of investigators from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health conducted a study to examine if cannabis predicts pain relief and is a viable non-opioid analgesic alternative. The study was previously presented at the 2024 Annual Meeting of the College on Problems of Drug Dependence and was then published in the journal Drug and Alcohol Dependence.2
The study cohort included 133 patients with chronic pain, of which 41% were female, 63% were non-Hispanic White with a mean age of 42.6. Throughout the study period, patients completed up to 4 surveys every day for 30 days that assessed changes in cannabis use and pain relief. Investigators used curvilinear multiple regressions to predict pain relief and controlled for opioid use, route of administration, and demographic factors.
The most common route of administration was edible cannabis with a median THC content of 9.64 mg, followed by smoked cannabis with a mean THC content of 0.58 mg. The study found that there was no effect for either edibles or smoked cannabis, indicating that cannabis use predicted little variability in pain relief. After adjusting for individual patient tolerance, there was still no effect found for either edible or smoked cannabis.
“Although participants reported consistent cannabis use, cannabis did not predict pain relief in patients with chronic pain within their everyday, natural environments,” the authors concluded. “The contrast between self-reported cannabis consumption and the absence of measurable pain relief warrants future research on potential placebo effects and other psychological processes implicated in pain relief perception.”
READ MORE: Nonopioid Pain Management
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