Document Detail


Experience with the synthetic cannabinoid nabilone in chronic noncancer pain.
MedLine Citation:
PMID:  16533193     Owner:  NLM     Status:  MEDLINE    
Abstract/OtherAbstract:
Chronic noncancer pain includes a heterogeneous group of disorders and is often refractory to treatment. Cannabis products have historically been used for chronic pain and are attracting renewed pharmaceutical interest. Nabilone is a synthetic cannabinoid licensed in Canada for the treatment of severe nausea and vomiting associated with cancer chemotherapy. We have used nabilone off-label for the treatment of chronic noncancer pain since 1999. In this article, we review our clinical experience of 20 adult patients with chronic noncancer pain who had been treated with nabilone and followed up for an average of 1.5 years. Prior to nabilone therapy, patients had used a wide range of therapies, including 11 who had used cannabis. Fifteen patients reported subjective overall improvement with nabilone, and nine reported reduced pain intensity. Beneficial effects on sleep and nausea were the main reasons for continuing use. Intolerable side effects were experienced in three patients (palpitations, urinary retention, dry mouth). Nabilone may be a useful addition to pain management and should be further evaluated in randomized controlled trials.
Authors:
David M Berlach; Yoram Shir; Mark A Ware
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Publication Detail:
Type:  Journal Article    
Journal Detail:
Title:  Pain medicine (Malden, Mass.)     Volume:  7     ISSN:  1526-2375     ISO Abbreviation:  Pain Med     Publication Date:    2006 Jan-Feb
Date Detail:
Created Date:  2006-03-14     Completed Date:  2006-06-01     Revised Date:  2007-11-15    
Medline Journal Info:
Nlm Unique ID:  100894201     Medline TA:  Pain Med     Country:  United States    
Other Details:
Languages:  eng     Pagination:  25-9     Citation Subset:  IM    
Affiliation:
McGill University Medical School, McGill University Health Center, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
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MeSH Terms
Descriptor/Qualifier:
Adult
Analgesics / administration & dosage,  adverse effects
Anti-Anxiety Agents / administration & dosage,  adverse effects
Arrhythmias, Cardiac / chemically induced
Chronic Disease / psychology,  therapy
Dose-Response Relationship, Drug
Drug Administration Schedule
Female
Humans
Male
Middle Aged
Nausea / drug therapy,  etiology,  physiopathology
Pain Threshold / drug effects
Pain, Intractable / drug therapy*,  physiopathology,  psychology
Retrospective Studies
Sleep / drug effects
Sleep Disorders / drug therapy,  etiology
Sleep Stages
Tetrahydrocannabinol / administration & dosage,  adverse effects,  analogs & derivatives*
Treatment Outcome
Urination Disorders / chemically induced
Xerostomia / chemically induced
Chemical
Reg. No./Substance:
0/Analgesics; 0/Anti-Anxiety Agents; 1972-08-3/Tetrahydrocannabinol; 56496-90-3/nabilone

From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine


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