Cannabinoids would work well on pain, but not through the same biological pathways as pain relievers. An interesting fact in the context of the debate on therapeutic cannabis.
These are data likely to advance the French debate on the legalization of therapeutic cannabis. Cannabinoids Could Make Pain More Bearable, New Study Says Published in JAMA Psychiatry.
Cannabinoids are chemical compounds that give the cannabis plant its medical and recreational properties. Marijuana – a mixture of dried and crumbled parts of the plant – contains hundreds of these compounds, of which tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, is the best known.
ANSM evaluation
In France, the legalization of therapeutic cannabis divides. After announcing that medical cannabis “could arrive in France”, the Minister of Health Agnès Buzyn took a further step towards “the cannabis cigarette” for medical use during an interview with RMC on July 10, provided, however, that it brings “a plus” in the treatment of diseases compared to cannabis-based drugs already authorized in France.
The National Medicines Safety Agency (ANSM) has decided to launch an evaluation to measure the value of prescribing therapeutic cannabis. “This is a real request from patients, it is also a real request from doctors who wish to develop this therapeutic use of cannabis,” Nathalie Richard, of the Medicines Agency, told France Info. The latest studies produced tend more in the direction of a non-association of pain reduction and therapeutic cannabis.
Pain is a complex phenomenon
“Cannabinoids are widely used as pain relievers, but experimental pain studies have shown mixed results,” says Martin De Vita, research director. He specifies: “pain is a complex phenomenon with multiple dimensions”. When ingested, THC binds to receptors in the brain that control pleasure, time perception, and pain. This activity produces dopamine, which causes euphoria and relaxation.
Analyzing data from 18 experimental cannabis studies conducted in recent years in North America, the team found that cannabinoids were associated with modest increases in experimental threshold of pain and tolerance, reduced pain. unpleasant perception of painful stimuli and no reduction in mechanical hyperalgesia or reduction in the intensity of continuing experimental pain.
“An emotional component”
“Patients are convinced that cannabis helps relieve pain, but its analgesic properties are poorly understood”, summarizes Martin De Vita. “This means that cannabinoid analgesia may be caused by an affective rather than a sensory component. These findings have implications for understanding the analgesic properties of cannabinoids,” he concluded.
In short, cannabinoids would have an impact on pain, but not as we previously thought. The chemical would act directly on the cortex of the brain, whereas analgesics follow the classic neurological circuit of pain (via the spinal cord).
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