Cannabis has been used to relieve pain for many years. Some states in the U.S. allow patients to use medical marijuana for conditions like multiple sclerosis and chronic pain. A new analysis suggests, however, that the pain-relieving effects of cannabis may be at least partly due to a belief in its effectiveness.
Researchers analyzed the results of twenty double-blind placebo-controlled studies testing synthetic and natural cannabinoids. The trials involved 1,459 people between the ages 33 and 62 who had neuropathic or other types of pain.
Researchers found that participants who were given a cannabis-based placebo reported a significant reduction of pain despite never having taken the drug. Researchers found that patients reported similar pain relief whether they used the active treatment, or a placebo.
Sandee LaMotte, CNN, reports that the placebo response was 67 percent as effective as the genuine cannabinoids.
In October, Kathryn T. Hall told Zoe Corbyn of the Guardian that previous research had shown the placebo effect to be powerful. It can rival common pain relievers, such as Ibuprofen or even morphine.
She told the publication that placebo effects have a small impact on clinical trials for cancer, viruses and bacterial infections. Other conditions that have high placebo responses include depression, IBS, epilepsy and hypertension. Not everyone will respond the same way.
In a press release, Ted J. Kaptchuk of Harvard Medical School’s Program in Placebo Studies & the Therapeutic Encounter said that the placebo effect does not mean a medication is ineffective. Instead, it can mimic its effect by using different neurobiological pathways.
CNN quotes Harriet de Wit who is an experimental psychologist from the University of Chicago, but was not part of the study. It’s not all in your head, but there are brain circuits involved in creating these thoughts and expectations.
Researchers found that the placebo effect was less pronounced in cannabis studies when patients were not blinded, i.e. they knew which treatment they had received.
The team also looked at how media coverage of cannabis studies may have affected the therapeutic effects reported to them by patients. The team analyzed 136 articles in the media and blogs, and classified each one as either positively or negatively characterizing cannabis as a treatment for pain relief. The team found that despite the outcome of a particular study, the “overwhelming” majority of media reports tended to show that cannabis was effective, according to co-author Filip GEDIN from the Karolinska instituted.
Godin writes that while the researchers were unable to prove that media coverage was a factor in the placebo effect they found that the results showed that scientists should be “extra rigorous” when conducting clinical trials on treatments that receive a lot of attention from the media.
Cannabis use for chronic pain sufferers may be more complex than first thought.
The statement says that chronic pain can be difficult to treat and clinical trials don’t reflect real-life situations. Kipchak, in a statement, says that after consulting with your doctor, if it helps you relieve pain and does not cause significant harm, then I’d say use it.
