Published in Arthritis Care & Research
Herbal Cannabis Use In Fibromyalgia Patients
Cannabinoids were used by 13% of patients referred with a diagnosis of FM. The association of herbal cannabis use with negative psychosocial parameters raises questions regarding the motive for this self-medication practice.
Patients with chronic pain, including fibromyalgia (FM), may seek treatments outside mainstream medicine. Medicinal cannabinoids are popularly advocated for pain relief but with limited evidence for efficacy in FM. The extent of use of cannabinoids in FM is unknown.
We have documented the self-reported prevalence of cannabinoid use in 457 patients carrying the diagnosis of FM and referred to a tertiary care pain centre. We validated the diagnosis of FM and examined the associations of cannabinoid use in these patients.
Cannabinoids were being used by 13% of all patients, 8% of whom used herbal cannabis (marijuana), 24% used prescription cannabinoids and 3% used both herbal cannabis and prescription cannabinoids. One third of all males used cannabinoids. Current unstable mental illness (36% vs. 23%; p=.2), opioid drug-seeking behaviour (17% vs. 4%; p=.1), and male gender (26% vs. 7%; p=.2) were all associated with herbal cannabis use. There was a trend for cannabinoid users to be unemployed and receiving disability payments.
The diagnosis of FM was validated in 32 patients, with 155 assigned another primary diagnosis. When the FM group was analyzed separately, significant associations were lost, but trends remained.
Cannabinoids were used by 13% of patients referred with a diagnosis of FM. The association of herbal cannabis use with negative psychosocial parameters raises questions regarding the motive for this self-medication practice.
Although cannabinoids may offer some therapeutic effect, caution regarding any recommendation should be exercised pending clarification of general health and psychosocial problems, especially for those self-medicating.
Source
No comments:
Post a Comment