Medical cannabis

For other uses of "Cannabis", see Cannabis (disambiguation).
"Medical marijuana" redirects here. For the company, see Medical Marijuana, Inc.

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Medical cannabis, medicinal cannabis or medical marijuana (MMJ) refers to cannabis products and cannabinoid molecules that are prescribed by physicians for their patients.[1][2][3][4] The use of cannabis as medicine has a long history, but has not been as rigorously tested as other medicinal plants due to legal and governmental restrictions, resulting in limited clinical research to define the safety and efficacy of using cannabis to treat diseases.[5]

Preliminary evidence has indicated that cannabis might reduce nausea and vomiting during chemotherapy and reduce chronic pain and muscle spasms.[6][7] Regarding non-inhaled cannabis or cannabinoids, a 2021 review found that it provided little relief against chronic pain and sleep disturbance, and caused several transient adverse effects, such as cognitive impairment, nausea, and drowsiness.[8]

Short-term use increases the risk of minor and major adverse effects.[7] Common side effects include dizziness, feeling tired, vomiting, and hallucinations.[7] Long-term effects of cannabis are not clear.[7] Concerns include memory and cognition problems, risk of addiction, schizophrenia in young people, and the risk of children taking it by accident.[6]

Many cultures have used cannabis for therapeutic purposes for thousands of years.[9] Some American medical organizations have requested removal of cannabis from the list of Schedule I controlled substances maintained by the United States federal government, followed by regulatory and scientific review.[10][11] Others oppose its legalization, such as the American Academy of Pediatrics.[12]

Medical cannabis can be administered through various methods, including capsules, lozenges, tinctures, dermal patches, oral or dermal sprays, cannabis edibles, and vaporizing or smoking dried buds. Synthetic cannabinoids are available for prescription use in some countries, such as synthetic delta-9-THC and nabilone. Countries that allow the medical use of whole-plant cannabis include Argentina, Australia, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Germany, Greece, Israel, Italy, the Netherlands, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Spain, and Uruguay. In the United States, 38 states and the District of Columbia have legalized cannabis for medical purposes, beginning with the passage of California's Proposition 215 in 1996.[13] Although cannabis remains prohibited for any use at the federal level, the Rohrabacher–Farr amendment was enacted in December 2014, limiting the ability of federal law to be enforced in states where medical cannabis has been legalized.

  1. ^ Murnion B (December 2015). "Medicinal cannabis". Australian Prescriber. 38 (6): 212–15. doi:10.18773/austprescr.2015.072. PMC 4674028. PMID 26843715.
  2. ^ "What is medical marijuana?". National Institute of Drug Abuse. July 2015. Archived from the original on 17 April 2016. Retrieved 19 April 2016. The term medical marijuana refers to using the whole unprocessed marijuana plant or its basic extracts to treat a disease or symptom.
  3. ^ Sarris J, Sinclair J, Karamacoska D, Davidson M, Firth J (16 January 2020). "Medicinal cannabis for psychiatric disorders: a clinically-focused systematic review". BMC Psychiatry. 20 (1): 24. doi:10.1186/s12888-019-2409-8. ISSN 1471-244X. PMC 6966847. PMID 31948424.
  4. ^ O'Brien K (1 June 2019). "Medicinal Cannabis: Issues of evidence". European Journal of Integrative Medicine. 28: 114–120. doi:10.1016/j.eujim.2019.05.009. ISSN 1876-3820.
  5. ^ "Release the strains". Nature Medicine. 21 (9): 963. September 2015. doi:10.1038/nm.3946. PMID 26340110.
  6. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference Borgelt2013 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ a b c d Cite error: The named reference JAMA2015 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ Wang L, Hong PJ, May C, Rehman Y, Oparin Y, Hong CJ, et al. (9 September 2021). "Medical cannabis or cannabinoids for chronic non-cancer and cancer related pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised clinical trials". BMJ. 374: n1034. doi:10.1136/bmj.n1034. ISSN 1756-1833. PMID 34497047. Archived from the original on 9 September 2021. Retrieved 9 September 2021.
  9. ^ Ben Amar M (April 2006). "Cannabinoids in medicine: A review of their therapeutic potential". Journal of Ethnopharmacology (Review). 105 (1–2): 1–25. CiteSeerX 10.1.1.180.308. doi:10.1016/j.jep.2006.02.001. PMID 16540272.
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference ANA was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  11. ^ Cite error: The named reference AAFP was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  12. ^ Cite error: The named reference AAP was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  13. ^ Cite error: The named reference NCSL was invoked but never defined (see the help page).