Multiple sclerosis (MS) is an autoimmune disease that attacks the central nervous system and is often a disabling disease. The body begins to attack the fatty layer that surrounds and protects the nerve fibers in the central nervous system known as myelin and it can also damage the nerve fibers themselves. Symptoms range from numbing of limbs, fatigue, motor and coordination problems, vision problems, pain, and unusual muscle tension known as spasticity just to name a few.
There are many different types of treatment for MS including interferon, a type of chemotherapy, massage therapy, acupuncture, and chiropractic therapy. But there is a new type of treatment that is still in the “development” stage, it’s marijuana. Cannabis sativa (marijuana) is still in the study stage but it is thought to manage symptoms like pain, tremors, and spasticity. Early studies used tetrahydrocannabinol, THC, in its oral form because they could control the dose. What they wanted to see was how THC managed spasticity, tremor, and balance. The results of these studies however did not give any definitive answer. Each patient reported different results and different side effects for each symptom that was being studied.
For spasticity, mixed results were found because some patients reported feeling less spasticity, unfortunately these results could not always be confirmed by testing done by physicians. Also the effects of the THC lasted at the most three hours and came with multiple side effects including weakness, dizziness, mental clouding, coordination problems, short-term memory impairment. For tremor, a small study was done with eight severely disabled patients. Five of the eight patients reported improvement in their tremor and all eight reported experiencing a “high”. Unfortunately, in the balance category, a study found that THC actually worsened the person’s control of their posture and balance in both people with MS and people without MS.
These studies show both the good and the bad sides of marijuana use in the treatment of multiple sclerosis. But what it shows most is that much more research needs to be done. Cannabis could be a strong treatment for people suffering from MS symptoms or it could be another “treatment” that offers more side effects than results. Only time will tell.
1) http://www.nationalmssociety.org/about-multiple-sclerosis/what-we-know-about-ms/treatments/complementary–alternative-medicine/marijuana/index.aspx
MS's new treatment?
