Cannabis extract found to be effective for lower back pain

A drug derived from cannabis softens the chronic pain in the lower back without serious side effects or signs of dependence, making it a potentially powerful alternative to existing pain relievers.

There are currently few treatment options for patients with chronic pain, many of which must take opioids which include a high risk of dependence.

The experimental drug Ver-01 is an extract from the cannabis plant containing 5% tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the main active ingredient.

In a clinical trial, 820 people with chronic lower back pain were randomly assigned to take Ver-01 or a placebo for 12 weeks. At the end of this period, people taking the drug had a reduction in their pain scores from 1.9 on average on a scale of 0 to 10, while those who took a placebo had a reduction of 1.4 points. There was no adverse event indicating a risk of withdrawal or abuse with the drug.

The study is the most rigorous to date to show clinically proven and non -addictive cannabis treatment for chronic pain, strengthening an increasing interest in cannabis as a pain treatment.

“This is one of the first very high quality studies for medical cannabis that many people, researchers and patients were waiting for,” said Winfried Meissner at Jena University Hospital in Germany, study researcher. “So far, evidence is poor, previous studies are of less quality, fewer patients.”

Those who have taken the Ver-01 also had significant improvements in the quality of sleep and physical function and most of the side effects were soft, including dizziness, fatigue, dry mouth and nausea. Patients gradually increased their dosage during the treatment period, taking up to 13 doses per day.

The treatment was particularly effective for back pain caused by nerve lesions, known as neuropathic pain. Meissner says that patients with chronic pain should always be treated first with physiotherapy, but pain relievers can help those who are unable to move. “Even a relatively small pain reduction could help [patients] Go exercise, ”he says.

Although the reduction in pain has not been massive, it is rare to see huge reductions in chronic pain, known as Marta Di Forti at King’s College in London, which was not involved in the study. “The fact that people can sleep better, which is a secondary result of the study, will have an immense impact on the ability to work,” she says. “When you look at the chronic pain, you don’t look at the giant effects.”

Di Forti says he struck that the test has shown no sign that patients should depend on the medication, and she hopes that this will lead to her prescription. She often hears patients who say that cannabis helps their pain and buy the plant from a drug trafficker, which she finds concerning. There is enormous variability in THC levels in cannabis joints and patients can end up smoking cannabis all day, which increases the risk of the drug, she said.

“In a world where there are cannabis claims that treat everything, at least here, we have a randomized control trial that tested it,” she said. “The fact that it works for pain is wonderful news in my opinion.”