Study: CBD-Dominant Marijuana Extracts Outperform THC in Older Adults With Chronic Pain, Although Both Help
- CBD-dominant full-spectrum marijuana extracts provided stronger pain relief and fewer side effects than pure THC in adults aged 65 and older with chronic or treatment-resistant pain.
- The study compared two groups of 484 patients each over 24 weeks, showing greater improvement in pain intensity, disability, sleep, daily functioning, quality of life, well-being, and emotional distress for the CBD group.
- Adverse drug reactions were significantly lower in the CBD group (104 reactions, 15.5% affected) compared to the THC group (342 reactions, 35.7% affected), with fewer treatment discontinuations due to side effects (5.6% vs. 19.2%).
- 85.7% of patients on CBD-dominant extracts achieved meaningful pain relief without stopping treatment due to adverse effects, versus 21.9% of those on THC; researchers suggest further randomized controlled trials to confirm findings.
A new study published in the Journal of Pain Research found that CBD-dominant full-spectrum marijuana extracts were associated with stronger pain relief and fewer side effects than pure THC in older adults with chronic or treatment-resistant pain. Researchers analyzed anonymized real-world data from the German Pain e-Registry, focusing on patients age 65 and older. The study compared two matched groups of 484 patients each over a period of at least 24 weeks. One group received CBD-dominant full-spectrum extracts with more CBD than THC, while the other received pure THC, also known as dronabinol.
According to the study, both treatments were linked to symptom improvement, but the CBD-dominant treatment produced greater benefits across every major category measured. That included average daily pain intensity, pain-related disability, nighttime sleep, daily functioning, quality of life, well-being and emotional distress. The study found these differences were statistically significant.
The safety findings were also notably different. Patients using the CBD-dominant extracts reported 104 adverse drug reactions, compared to 342 in the THC group. Side effects affected 15.5% of patients in the CBD group, versus 35.7% in the THC group. Treatment discontinuation due to side effects was also far lower among those using CBD-dominant extracts, at 5.6% compared to 19.2%.
The study’s primary composite endpoint required patients to avoid stopping treatment because of an adverse reaction while also achieving meaningful improvement in pain, disability or sleep. That benchmark was reached by 85.7% of patients using CBD-dominant extracts, compared to 21.9% of those using THC.
Researchers concluded that CBD-dominant extracts were associated with better multidimensional outcomes and improved tolerability in this older patient population, while noting that the findings are exploratory and should be confirmed through randomized controlled trials.