PMID- 33597032
OWN - NLM
STAT- PubMed-not-MEDLINE
LR  - 20231104
IS  - 2522-5782 (Electronic)
IS  - 2522-5782 (Linking)
VI  - 3
IP  - 1
DP  - 2021 Feb 17
TI  - Medical cannabis for the treatment of fibromyalgia syndrome: a retrospective, 
      open-label case series.
PG  - 4
LID - 10.1186/s42238-021-00060-6 [doi]
LID - 4
AB  - BACKGROUND: The use of cannabis for treating fibromyalgia syndrome (FMS) has not 
      been comprehensively investigated. Thus, we have assessed the efficacy and 
      adverse events (AEs) of short- and long-term medical cannabis (MC) treatment for 
      FMS. METHODS: Data were obtained from medical reports archived in the pain clinic 
      of Ponderano (Italy; retrospective study). FMS patients, who were resistant to 
      conventional therapy, received licensed MC with various Delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol 
      (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) content, as powdered whole flowers (decoction or 
      vaporization) or oil extracts. Demographic and clinical parameters, including 
      Numerical Rating Scale (NRS), Oswestry Disability Index (ODI), Hospital Anxiety 
      and Depression Scale, Widespread Pain Index (WPI), Severity Score (SyS), and side 
      effects, were obtained after 1, 3, and 12 months. Data were analyzed with 
      Wilcoxon signed-rank tests for paired data. RESULTS: Thirty-eight patients were 
      included. Thirty, 18, and 12 patients continued therapy for 1, 3, and 12 months, 
      respectively. Significant improvements (p < 0.01) were observed in NRS, ODI, WPI, 
      and SyS at 1 month; in NRS, ODI, and WPI at 3 months; and in NRS, ODI, and SyS at 
      12 months. Therapy was interrupted by 17 patients (48.6%) owing to nonserious AEs 
      according to the FDA. The most common side effects were mental confusion (37%), 
      dizziness (14%), nausea/vomiting (14%), and restlessness/irritation (14%). The 
      median daily dose of milled flowers administered as THC-dominant MC and hybrid MC 
      (with similar THC/CBD ratio) was 200 mg/day and 400 mg/day, respectively. After 3 
      months of titration, the median content of THC administered with THC-dominant MC 
      cultivars was 46.2 mg, and of THC + CBD administered as a hybrid MC cultivar, was 
      23.6 mg + 38 mg. At 3 months, median THC content administered in the oil extract 
      of the THC-dominant MC cultivars was 9.7 mg, while that of THC + CBD administered 
      in the oil extract of the hybrid MC cultivars was 1.8 mg + 2 mg. CONCLUSIONS: MC 
      may represent an alternative treatment for patients with FMS who are unresponsive 
      to conventional therapy. However, its application may be limited by the incidence 
      of nonserious AEs.
FAU - Mazza, Manuela
AU  - Mazza M
AUID- ORCID: 0000-0003-3307-0366
AD  - Department of Anaesthesiology, Critical Care Medicine and Pain Medicine, Nuovo 
      Ospedale degli Infermi, Via dei Ponderanesi 2, Biella, Ponderano, Italy. 
      manuela.mazza@aslbi.piemonte.it.
LA  - eng
PT  - Journal Article
DEP - 20210217
PL  - England
TA  - J Cannabis Res
JT  - Journal of cannabis research
JID - 101752723
PMC - PMC7890993
OTO - NOTNLM
OT  - Case series
OT  - Fibromyalgia treatment
OT  - Herbal cannabis
OT  - Medical cannabis
OT  - Musculoskeletal pain
OT  - Open-label study
COIS- The author declares that there are no competing interests.
EDAT- 2021/02/19 06:00
MHDA- 2021/02/19 06:01
PMCR- 2021/02/17
CRDT- 2021/02/18 05:47
PHST- 2020/04/03 00:00 [received]
PHST- 2021/02/08 00:00 [accepted]
PHST- 2021/02/18 05:47 [entrez]
PHST- 2021/02/19 06:00 [pubmed]
PHST- 2021/02/19 06:01 [medline]
PHST- 2021/02/17 00:00 [pmc-release]
AID - 10.1186/s42238-021-00060-6 [pii]
AID - 60 [pii]
AID - 10.1186/s42238-021-00060-6 [doi]
PST - epublish
SO  - J Cannabis Res. 2021 Feb 17;3(1):4. doi: 10.1186/s42238-021-00060-6.