A recent study examining the effects of cannabis to treat pain associated with sickle cell disease has been released, we asked Dr. Paez and Dr. Saranita to share their thoughts on this new study.
Dr. Saranita shares that sickle cell disease is, "A disorder of the blood, which can be extremely painful. In sickle cell, red blood cells are deformed causing the shape of the cell to form like sickles. These mishaped cells tend to clog blood vessels, which results in acute or chronic pain, infection and potentially serious cardiovascular complications. In addition, these mishaped red blood cells have a shorter life span. Red blood cells are important as they are used to transport oxygen around the body. Because of their shortened lifespan, patients with sickle cell can have reduced oxygen levels in their body."
Acute and chronic pain affect persons with sickle cell disease. Currently, for mild pain associated with sickle cell, health providers may suggest over the counter analgesics to treat the pain. Dr. Saranita shares in more severe cases of acute and chronic pain, "Pain management physicians may prescribe other medications, which includes opioid medications, however there have been efforts from the medical community to identify other methods of managing sickle cell pain with the least amount of adverse outcomes."
Dr. Paez, Co-Director South Lake Medical Research shares, "Recently, researchers at California Irvine's Center for the Study of Cannabis conducted a double-blind study (neither the participants nor the researchers know who is receiving a particular treatment) to test the hypothesis that cannabis can be effective at treating sickle cell pain vs. placebo."
"The study conducted by California Irvine's Center for the Study of Cannabis suggests that sickle cell patients may be able to reduce their pain with the use of cannabis, in addition when patients inhaled cannabis the pain interfered less with their mood," says Dr. Saranita.
"While much more study is needed in larger scale studies to validate the results, the latest research is important because it verifies the hypothesis paving the way for more research," says Dr. Paez.
