The use of medical cannabis can be an effective therapy for pain relief in patients with Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT), a study published in the ‘American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine’ described. Chronic pain is a challenging situation for those with CMT. An exploratory study put forward by Priscilla C. Canals et al. assessed the patient-reported effectiveness of cannabis or medical marijuana for pain relief in people with CMT.

Fifty-six study participants (71.4% women; mean age of 48.9 years; 48.5% CMT1) were requested to fill out online survey questions comprising 52 multiple-choice questions about patient characteristics, use of medical cannabis, symptoms, efficacy, and negative side effects. Almost all (90.9%) of participants stated feeling pain, together with all (100%) women and 72.7% of men. At least 50% of pain relief was reported by 91.7% of respondents with the use of medical cannabis. The most common response was an 80% decrease in pain. The use of medicines by the participants is described in the following Table 1:

About 23.5% of respondents reported negative adverse effects. Nevertheless, almost all (91.7%) participants did not intend to discontinue the use of cannabis. One-third (33.9%) of study respondents had a medical cannabis certificate. The patient opinions of their clinicians’ outlook concerning patient medical cannabis use significantly impacted whether respondents reported the providers of their use. Future studies regarding using proper dosing regimen to further define and improve the possible use of cannabis for pain relief related to CMT disease is awaited.