The medicinal use of cannabis in the UK: results of a nationwide survey

Abstract

The use of cannabis for medical purposes is a controversial but an important topic of public and scientific interest. We report on the results of a self-administered questionnaire study conducted in the United Kingdom between 1998 and 2002. The questionnaire consisted of 34 items and included demographic data, disease and medication use patterns and cannabis use profiles. Subjects were self-selected; 3663 questionnaires were distributed and 2969 were returned [1805 (60.9%) women, mean age 52.7 years (SD 12.7)]. Medicinal cannabis use was reported by patients with chronic pain (25%), multiple sclerosis and depression (22% each), arthritis (21%) and neuropathy (19%). Medicinal cannabis use was associated with younger age, male gender and previous recreational use (p < 0.001). While caution must be exercised in interpreting these data, they point to the need for clinical studies of cannabis and cannabinoids with standardised and quality-controlled products.

Cannabinoids Elicit Antidepressant-Like Behavior and Activate Serotonergic Neurons through the Medial Prefrontal Cortex

“…Clinical studies have reported benefits of cannabis on mood disorders (Ashton et al, 2005;Ware et al, 2005). Genetic (Haller et al, 2002(Haller et al, , 2004Martin et al, 2002) or pharmacological (Navarro et al, 1997;Deroche-Gamonet et al, 2001) CB 1 R blockade in murine models yields enhanced expression of depression/ anxiety-like behaviors.…”

A Comparison of Mainstream and Sidestream Marijuana and Tobacco Cigarette Smoke Produced under Two Machine Smoking Conditions

“…In Canada, the Medical Marijuana Access Regulations provides a legal means for patients, with the support of their physician, to be authorized to use marijuana for medical purposes. Most of the people who use marijuana for medical purposes use it by the smoking route (4,5).…”

The endocannabinoid system in pain and inflammation: Its relevance to rheumatic disease

“…The primary components of the endocannabinoid signaling system (CB1, CB2, and FAAH) are characteristically expressed in the synovium of both osteoarthritic (OA) and rheumatoid arthritic (RA) patients, with compelling evidence to demonstrate an active participation in the pathophysiology of joint pain (35). Preclinical and clinical studies support the therapeutic application of cannabinoids in the treatment of chronic pain, and to date, patients suffering from chronic arthritic and musculoskeletal pain represent the most prevalent users of medicinal cannabis (36). Despite this optimism, hesitation in clinical application is prevalent with extensive guidelines published in different countries (37)(38)(39).…”

“…More recently, an increased expression of CB1 accompanied by OA development has been demonstrated (36). CB1 receptors are located on peripheral sympathetic nerve terminals as well as on nociceptive nerve fibers, where they modulate adrenergic signaling to influence cytokine production (44).…”