Study shows marijuana effective at relieving pain

**Nate** · #1 05-17-2010, 01:14 AM

Study shows marijuana effective at relieving pain

By Timm Herdt
Posted February 17, 2010 at 12:01 a.m

SACRAMENTO —" A medical research center created by the Legislature in 2000 today reported to lawmakers that there is “reasonable evidence” that marijuana is as effective or superior to established treatments in relieving certain types of chronic pain.
That conclusion is based on five clinical trials, the findings of which have been scientifically reviewed and published in medical journals.
The findings are significant because they result from the nation’s only scientific study of the medical effectiveness of marijuana. Because the federal government classifies marijuana as a Schedule One drug, the Food and Drug Administration will not authorize federally funded research involving the drug.
“The findings were very consistent,” said Dr. Igor Grant, director of the Center for Medicinal Cannabis Research at UC San Diego. “Short-term treatment with marijuana did reduce pain. There is great evidence now that cannabinoids may be an adjunct to, or potentially a first-line treatment in peripheral neuropathy.”
He described “peripheral neuropathy” as a condition in which patients experience “burning, painful, unpleasant to sometimes insufferable feelings largely to their feet and legs and sometimes to their arms” as a result of nerve injuries or disease. He said an estimated 10 percent of the population experiences some level of neuropathic pain.
The center was established by lawmakers after the passage of California’s medical marijuana initiative in an attempt to determine whether there is any science-based justification for the law..."

Click on the link for the full article:
http://www.vcstar.com/news/2010/feb/17/study-shows-marijuana-effective-at-relieving/

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