Researchers found that more than 50% of people who used cannabis to manage chronic pain said it led them to reduce their use of opioids or other over-the-counter medications. Medical marijuana products are found in 35 US states.
Cannabis has been used by people who have been suffering from chronic pain for many years to manage their symptoms, with medical cannabis products available to these people in 37 US states as well as Washington, D.C. from 2022. A new survey shows that more people who turn to cannabis for pain relief are also reducing their use of prescription and over-the-counter medications, including opioids.
Said the study's author, Dr. Mark Beckett, assistant professor in the department of anesthesiology at the University of Medicine and vs. University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. Michigan, Healthline said. "This is also the case for non-narcotic drugs, as well as over-the-counter pain relievers," he said.
Cannabis users report a decrease in opioid use
In a research letter published in January. 6 In JAMA Network Open, researchers surveyed more than 1,600 people with chronic pain living in one of 36 states—and Washington, DC. -- with medical marijuana programs operating as of early 2022.
The average age of the respondents is 52 and more than half are women. About three in ten people say they have ever used cannabis to control chronic pain, and nearly a quarter of them have done so in the past year.
The majority of cannabis users also reported using at least one prescription or over-the-counter medication. In addition, over 66% of cannabis users have used a non-pharmacological treatment such as naturopathy, meditation, or cognitive behavioral therapy.
Researchers found that more than half of people who use cannabis to treat chronic pain said that cannabis reduced their use of prescription opioids, over-the-counter opioids, or over-the-counter pain relievers. In contrast, less than 1% of people said their cannabis use led to an increase in their use of prescription or over-the-counter medications.
Some people also report that their cannabis use has reduced their use of physical therapy, meditation, or cognitive behavioral therapy. However, others have reported increased use of these non-drug therapies.
Research consistent with other cannabis research
The findings are consistent with other research showing that in states with medical marijuana laws, opioid D prescriptions fell from Medicare after the medical marijuana program, said Sherry Yafai, MD, an emergency physician at St. John's Physician Urgent Care Partners in Santa Monica. Where is the polyphony. In addition, some studies show that "in states with marijuana regulations, we're seeing lower rates of opioid overdoses," Yafai says.
While new research shows that some people with chronic pain use cannabis, the study wasn't designed to prove whether cannabis actually relieves their pain symptoms. Dr. Roger Chu, Professor of Health Informatics and Clinical Epidemiology at Oregon Health & University of Science. in Portland, Oregon, Healthline said.
Also, the study didn't compare marijuana users with non-users, so we don't know what people would do without marijuana. "Perhaps the patients would have had similar results if they had used a different drug or non-drug treatment," Zhou said.
He points to other limitations of the new study, such as a lack of information about other factors that may influence people's pain and the types of cannabis products used. “So while this study certainly indicates that patients feel that cannabis reduces their chronic pain,” Zhu says, similarly designed studies have suggested the same for many other treatments that have been shown to be ineffective.
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