#NORML #News Source: @norml @WeedConnection Posted By: norml@weedconnection.com media :: news - Tue, 29 Aug 2017 04:20:21 PST
Case Series: Topical Cannabis Preparations Associated With Reduced Opioid Use
Toronto, Canada: The administration of whole-plant topical cannabis extracts is associated with reduced pain and opioid use in patients suffering from leg and ankle ulcers due to Pyoderma Gangrenosum (PG), according to a series of case reports published online ahead of print in the Journal of Pain Symptom Management.
Researchers from the University of Toronto evaluated the impact of topically applied cannabis extracts on skin ulcer wounds in three separate patients. Extracts contained nearly equal percentages of THC and CBD.
Investigators reported clinically significant analgesia and reduced opioid utilization in all three subjects.
"This is the first case series to demonstrate the potential of TMC (topical medical cannabis) to provide effective analgesia that was opioid sparing in the setting of PG," authors concluded. "TMC has the potential to improve pain management in patients suffering from wounds of all classes."
Full text of the study, "Topical medical cannabis: A new treatment for wound pain - Three cases of Pyoderma Gangrenosum," appears in the Journal of Pain Symptom Management."
Study: Cannabis Use May Modulate Pancreatitis Severity
Macon, GA: Patients with a history of cannabis use present less severe symptoms of acute alcoholic pancreatitis (AAP) as compared to matched controls, according to data published in the journal Translational Gastroenterology and Hepatology.
Researchers from the Mercer School of Medicine assessed AAP severity at the time of hospital admission in 38 patients with a history of cannabis use versus 76 patients who tested negative for the substance. Subjects were matched for age, sex, race, and medical history.
Patients who tested positive for cannabis exhibited less severe manifestations of AAP and were less likely to be placed in ICU than were controls.
Authors concluded: "[W]e found that cannabis positive patients had less severe presentation of AAP indicating that cannabis could modulate the inflammatory effects of alcohol on the pancreas. ... Further, large scale studies are needed to characterize the effect of cannabis on AP."
Full text of the study, "Severity and outcomes of acute alcoholic pancreatitis in cannabis users," appears in Translational Gastroenterology and Hepatology.
Case Reports: Cannabinoids Improve Speech In Patients With Tourette Syndrome
Hannover, Germany: The daily administration of cannabinoids is associated with improved speech fluency in patients with Tourette Syndrome (TS), according to a pair of case reports published in The International Journal of Molecular Sciences.
A pair of researchers from the Hannover Medical School in Germany assessed the impact of daily cannabinoid treatment in two TS patients with treatment-resistant vocal blocking tics. One patient underwent therapy utilizing THC-dominant whole-plant cannabis. The other utilized dronabinol (oral THC).
In both cases, authors reported that treatment resulted in "significant improvement not only of simple and complex motor and vocal tics, but also in the overall symptomology including comorbid conditions and most importantly significantly improved patients' quality of life including their social contacts and performance at school without side effects."
They concluded, "[C]annabis-based medicine appears to be effective in treatment-resistant TS patients with vocal blocking tics."
Prior studies and case reports have similarly demonstrated that the administration of either inhaled cannabis or oral synthetic THC is associated with substantial improvements in TS-related symptoms.
Full text of the study, "Speechlessness in Gille de la Tourette Syndrome: Cannabis-based medicines improve severe vocal blocking tics in two patients," appears in The International Journal of Molecular Sciences.
Maine: Lawmakers Propose Changes To State's Voter-Initiated Adult Use Marijuana Law
Augusta, ME: Members of a special legislative committee have called for changes in the state's voter-initiated adult use marijuana law prior to its full implementation. The full legislature is expected to debate the proposed changes as an emergency bill during a special session this October.
Maine voters narrowly approved The Marijuana Legalization Act in November. Provisions in the law permitting adults to possess and grow personal use quantities of cannabis took effect in late January. However, lawmakers delayed until at least February 1, 2018 the enactment of separate regulations regarding the licensed production, sale, and social use of cannabis.
Committee members tasked with regulating retail aspects of the new law have proposed increasing taxes on commercial cannabis sales and imposing a moratorium on the establishment of adult use cannabis social clubs - facilities that were explicitly permitted in the initiative's text. Members have also proposed language allowing retail-friendly municipalities to receive a percentage of marijuana tax revenue.
Public hearings regarding the suggested changes are anticipated to begin in September. It is not known whether lawmakers will be able to pass an implementation measure prior to the February 1 deadline.
Lawmakers in several other states - including Florida, Massachusetts, and North Dakota - have similarly moved to significantly amend voter-approved marijuana laws prior to their full implementation.
