Medical Cannabis for Chronic Pain: A Retrospective Review of Observational Data

Abstract

Chronic pain is a debilitating condition that affects 1 in 5 adults globally. An increasing number of people living with chronic pain are using medical cannabis for symptom relief, however, the therapeutic potential of medical cannabis for treating chronic pain is debated. We conducted a retrospective cohort study examining cannabis use for the management of chronic pain using anonymous archival data obtained from the medicinal cannabis tracking app, Strainprint®. Multilevel models were used to analyze data from 741 users in which inhaled, and orally consumed cannabis was used to treat symptoms of chronic pain. In our adjusted model, greater pain relief was associated with male sex vs. female (-0.69 cm on a 10 cm visual analogue scale [VAS]; 95%CI -0.46 to -0.91 cm), joint pain vs. muscle-related pain (-0.05 cm; 95%CI -0.01 to -0.08 cm), and high THC vs. high cannabidiol [CBD]) products (-0.08 cm; 95%CI -0.01 to -0.14 cm); but no significant association with age (-0.008 cm; 95%CI 0.09 to -0.10 cm), nerve pain vs. muscle pain (-0.03 cm; 95%CI 0.02 to -0.08 cm), or the route of administration (inhaled vs. oral, -0.05 cm; 95%CI 0.002 to -0.1 cm). There was a significant interaction with duration of use and product type; specifically, greater pain relief was associated with prolonged use of balanced products (THC & CBD) vs. high CBD products (-0.009 cm; 95%CI -0.003 to -0.01 cm). Overall, medical cannabis provided large improvements in chronic pain symptoms.