The Effectiveness of Treating Epilepsy with Cannabis

It’s no secret that one of the major uses of medical cannabis that helped with the initial push for medical status and legalization in the first place is the effect cannabis has on those with epilepsy. However, up until recently, there was not much hard scientific evidence about this treatment and how effective it really is. 

There have been stories of people utilizing oils and edibles who see a decrease, or ever halt, in the number of seizures experienced. The world has also seen the development of low-THC alternatives for children with epilepsy. Now, as medical research in the field is taking off, we are learning more about this treatment for an ailment that has plagued individuals for centuries. 

It has recently been discovered that cannabis high in CBD rather than THC is effective in treating seizures, leading to studies that want to synthesize CBD and make a medication with none of the intoxicating effects of THC. 

Dr. Orrin Devinsky of the Comprehensive Epilepsy Center at NYU explains the measures being taken to try and explore this further. “While cannabis has been used to treat epilepsy for centuries, data from double-blind randomized, controlled trials of CBD or THC in epilepsy is lacking. Randomized controlled studies of CBD in targeted epilepsy groups, such as patients with Dravet or Lennox-Gastaut syndromes, are in the planning stages.”

One of the places where this research might take place is in Denver, through the Comprehensive Epilepsy Program at Denver Health. Dr. Edward Maa, who is in charge of this program, is all for these advancements. “As medical professionals, it is important that we further the evidence of whether CBD in cannabis is an effective antiepileptic therapy,” she states. 

As more studies are done on this treatment, those who medicate with cannabis for epilepsy and see improvements, can get more solid answers as to why the treatment is working— and also rest assured that their means of release will never again come under fire.