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Clinical Trial: CBD Safe and Effective for Young People with Treatment-Resistant Anxiety Disorders

Melbourne, Australia: The adjunctive use of CBD safely and effectively reduces severe anxiety in young people, according to clinical data published in The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry.

Australian researchers assessed the daily administration of CBD in a cohort of 31 young people (ages 12 to 25) with refractory anxiety. Participants self-titrated their daily doses of CBD (between 400 mgs and 800 mgs) over a 12-week period.

CBD dosing was associated with a "statistically significant reduction in anxiety severity," as measured on the Overall Anxiety Severity and Impairment Scale (OASIS). CBD dosing also "demonstrated an acceptable safety profile, with no serious adverse events reported and no clinically significant deviations to blood cell counts."

Investigators reported, "Approximately 40 percent of all participants experienced a 50 percent reduction in OASIS score, and two-thirds experienced a 33 percent reduction." They added, "By the end of treatment, the number of participants rated as markedly or severely ill had decreased from 17 (56.7 percent) to 5 (16.7 percent)."

Authors acknowledged that CBD’s greatest efficacy was observed during the final four weeks of treatment, indicating that a longer treatment regimen may potentially lead "to even greater improvements."

They concluded: "Given that the patients included in our trial were some of the most severe and treatment resistant and had significant functional impairment and multiple failed treatment attempts, the reduction in anxiety severity observed here suggests that CBD has clinically meaningful anxiolytic effects. ... The findings of this trial suggest that further investigation of CBD for anxiety in conjunction with usual care is warranted."

Other human trials evaluating the use of CBD for anxiety have yielded inconsistent results. A 2019 placebo-controlled trial reported that daily CBD intake reduces symptoms of social anxiety disorder in teens, whereas a 2022 study determined oral doses of CBD to be ineffective at reducing symptoms of moderate-to-severe testing anxiety in college students. A 2018 Brazilian study reported that the consumption of 300mg of CBD significantly reduced anxiety due to public speaking, but that higher (600mg) and lower (150mg) had no effect.

Full text of the study, "Cannabidiol for treatment-resistant anxiety disorders in young people: An open-label trial," appears in The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry.

Study: Medical Cannabis Use Not Associated with Elevated Risk of Hospitalizations Due to Mental Health Disorders

Quebec, Canada: Authorized medical cannabis patients are at low risk for psychiatric hospitalizations resulting from their marijuana use, according to data published in the journal Substance Use & Misuse.

Canadian researchers assessed marijuana-related hospitalizations among a cohort of over 23,000 authorized medical cannabis patients. (Canada has legalized the use of cannabis products for both medical purposes and for adult use.) Specifically, investigators tracked incidences of hospitalizations attributable to either "cannabis poisoning" or because of "mental or behavioral disorders due to the use of cannabis." Patients in the study were tracked for a median of 240 days.

During the course of the trial, investigators reported that a total of 14 patients were hospitalized for issues related to cannabis toxicity and 26 were admitted for either mental or behavioral disorders. The findings push back against high-profile claims from some cannabis reform opponents that frequent marijuana exposure is a trigger for psychosis and other mental health disorders.

"The results suggest that the incidence of cannabis poisoning or cannabis-related mental or behavioral disorders was low among patients who were authorized to use cannabis for medical care," authors concluded. "Our observation of small rates of ED visits and hospitalization for cannabis poisoning and CUDs [cannabis use disorders] among this large cohort of medical cannabis users helps address concerns regarding increasing use of medical cannabis."

Full text of the study, "Incidence and predictors of cannabis-related poisonings and mental and behavioral disorders among patients with a medical cannabis authorization: A cohort study," appears in Substance Use & Misuse.

Analysis: Cannabis Use Not Associated with Increased COVID Severity

Los Angeles, CA: Current cannabis use is associated with deceased disease severity in patients hospitalized for COVID 19, according to data published in the Journal of Cannabis Research.

Researchers affiliated with the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles conducted a retrospective analysis of 1,831 COVID patients admitted to two medical centers in California. They reported, "Active cannabis users hospitalized with COVID 19 had better clinical outcomes compared with non-users, including decreased need for ICU admission or mechanical ventilation." However, investigators reported no association between cannabis use and better overall survival rates.

Authors reported that the association between cannabis use and decreased symptom severity remained consistent even after researchers adjusted for potential confounders, such as age and comorbid conditions.

"To our knowledge, this study is one of the first evaluations of the effect of cannabis use on outcomes in patients hospitalized with COVID-19," they concluded. "While previous data have determined the detrimental relationship of tobacco smoking with COVID-19, this study suggests that cannabis may actually lead to reduced disease severity and better outcomes despite a five-fold greater concomitant use of tobacco amongst cannabis users compared to non-users in our study population."

Preclinical studies and reviews have suggested that the administration of certain cannabis compounds could potentially modulate COVID infections. However, to date, no controlled clinical trials have substantiated the theory that cannabinoids can assist in either preventing COVID infections or in mitigating symptoms of the virus. Clinical trial data published in November failed to demonstrate that the adjunctive use of CBD aided COVID patients in their recovery from the virus. A separate observational study published last year reported that COVID 19 patients with elevated rates of overall substance use were more likely to experience more adverse outcomes, including hospitalization and death.

Full text of the study, "Cannabis consumption is associated with lower COVID-19 severity among hospitalized patients: A retrospective cohort analysis," appears in the Journal of Cannabis Research.

Texas: Voters in Five Cities to Decide on Marijuana Depenalization Initiatives

Austin, Texas: Voters in five Texas cities will decide this November on local ballot measures to end low-level marijuana possession arrests.

Activists with the group Ground Game Texas successfully gathered signatures from voters in the cities of Denton (population: 140,000), Elgin (population: 10,000), Harker Heights (32,000), Killeen (149,000), and San Marcos (64,000) to place marijuana-related questions before local lawmakers. In each instance, councilmembers moved to defer the issue to the November ballot.

The measures seek to amend local laws so that police officers can no longer "issue citations or make arrests for Class A or Class B misdemeanor possession of marijuana offenses" absent defendants' alleged involvement in a "felony level narcotics" case. If voters approve the proposals, police will still be permitted to confiscate cannabis from those who possess it in small quantities.

In May, voters in Austin overwhelmingly approved a similar municipal measure depenalizing marijuana possession and prohibiting police from executing 'no knock' warrants.

Texas law does not allow for statewide, citizen-initiated measures.

Statewide polling finds that 67 percent of Texans, including majorities of Democrats, Independents, and Republicans, support legalizing the sale and use of marijuana.

Under state law, minor marijuana possession is classified as a criminal misdemeanor, punishable by up to 180 days incarceration and a $2,000 fine. Texas police made an estimated 219,000 marijuana-related arrests between 2017 and 2021. Ninety-seven percent of those arrested were charged with possession only.