A study of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and psoriatic arthritis (PsA) patients has found some experience a significant degree of relief with cannabinoids.
Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic autoimmune condition that can cause pain and swelling in joints. Psoriatic arthritis is another autoimmune form of arthritis causing joint inflammation and occurs with psoriasis; a skin condition.
RA affects around 1.3 million individuals in the USA, while PsA impacts approximately 500,000 – it’s a significant issue particularly among the older population.
Researchers from multiple US universities carried out a survey initially involving 302 eligible candidates with RA or PsA, with 290 patients completing it. Among them, 84.9% reported a diagnosis of RA, while 15.1% reported PsA.
The baseline pain level for RA patients averaged 6.4/10 while patients with PsA reported a baseline pain level of 5.4/10. 16.95% of RA patients and 11.63% of those with PsA reported a history of cannabinoid use to manage their symptoms. The most common form of cannabinoid administration by the survey population was inhalation, followed by topical, liquid, oil and capsule. More than a third sourced products from dispensaries, followed by around 21% from someone the patient knew.
A significant decrease in pain scale was noted (mean difference: 2.267) post-cannabis use, with improvements also in stiffness, fatigue and swelling reported; while side effects were minimal. The researchers stress it’s unclear if the positive findings are related to a placebo effect.
Another positive result was the majority of both RA and PsA patients were willing to discuss cannabinoid treatment with their physician.
A higher prevalence and persistence of cannabinoid use was noted in the RA group compared to the PsA group, which the researchers say may be attributed to the more severe baseline pain reported by RA patients.
“Overall, our findings contribute to the growing literature on cannabinoid therapy for arthritis symptoms, emphasizing the need for continued research to optimize treatment strategies for affected individuals.”
While encouraging results, the researchers caution that cannabinoids have the potential to interact unfavorably with some prescribed medications and pose adverse effects. Additionally, the safety and efficacy of cannabis use in inflammatory arthritis have still not been satisfactorily established.
The full study has been published in the journal Cureous.
