In a real-world evidence study, medicinal cannabis taken at various doses seems to be well-tolerated, and considerable decline in polypharmacy over time were noted. This study examined the longitudinal connection between medicinal cannabis introduction and polypharmacy. Long-term safety was also assessed.

The Emerald Clinics, an Australian-wide network of seven clinics, gathered data. Antidepressants, benzodiazepines, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medicines (NSAIDs), opioids, and the total number of prescriptions were grouped together as medications. At each visit, side effects were recorded and later categorized into preferred term and system organ class with the aid of Medical Dictionary for Regulatory Activities.

Overall, 535 volunteers were examined. For cannabidiol and delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the most popular daily oral dose was 15 mg. Over the course of a year, patients took fewer drugs overall after the introduction of medicinal cannabis.  Considerable drops in the use of NSAIDs, benzodiazepines, and antidepressants were noted. By the end of the year, the quantity of opioid prescriptions did not alter from the starting point.

During the course of the research, only 6% of the subjects stopped receiving medicinal cannabis. Overall, 310 people reported 600 adverse events during the reporting period. Notably, 97% of them were deemed to be minor. These results, which are observational in nature, but are consistent with the prior literature, imply that medicinal cannabis has a good safety profile and may lessen the concurrent use of several drugs. Decline in concomitant medicines cannot be causally linked to medicinal cannabis because of study limitations. These statistics nevertheless highlight early indications that call for additional evaluation in randomized trials.