Cannabis and Cannabinoid Research, 2022
Barchel Dana1, Stolar Orit2, Ziv-Baran Tomer3, Itai Gueta4,Berkovitch Matitiahu1, Kohn Elkana1, and Bar-Lev Schleider Lihi5
1Clinical Pharmacology and Toxicology Unit, Shamir (Assaf Harofeh) Medical Center, Zerifin, Israel affiliated to Sackler School of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel; 2Autistic Spectrum Disorder Clinic, Shamir (Assaf Harofeh) Medical Center, Zerifin, Israel, affiliated to Sackler School of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel; 3Department of Epidemiology and Preventive Medicine, School of Public Health, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel;4 Internal medicine A, Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer, Israel, The institute of Clinical Pharmacology and Toxicology, Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer, Israel, Sackler school of medicine, Tel Aviv University, Israel; 5Research Department, Tikun Olam – Cannbit Pharmaceuticals, Israel.
Tourette’s syndrome is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by vocal and motor tics and other comorbidities. Patients with Gilles de la Tourette syndrome experience reduced function and impaired quality of life. The current medical treatments for this syndrome can cause significant side effects and offer partial symptomatic relief. The aim of this study, conducted in collaboration with Shamir (Assaf Harofeh) Medical Center, was to describe the effect of medical cannabis treatment in patients with Tourette’s syndrome. The study found that medical cannabis may improve Tourette patients’ quality of life and comorbidities symptoms.
STUDY POPULATION: 70 Tourette patients (57 males, Median age 31 year)
STUDY PRODUCT: Various Tikun Olam’s strains and products
Results:
57 patients (81.4%) remained in active treatment.
– Improvement in anxiety – Of 19 patients who reported an anxiety disorder, 89% reported an improvement, and 11% reported no change.
– Improved quality of life – Of the 43 patients answering this question, 69.8% reported an improvement, 25.6% reported no change, and 4.6% reported worsening.
– Change in the number of medications – 28 patients reported the use of conventional drugs for Tourette’s syndrome during the study period, using medical cannabis as a supplemental treatment. The average number of medications was 2 (range 0-7) before treatment and decreased to 0.5 (range 0-1) after six months of treatment.
– Improvement in obsessive-compulsive disorder – Of 9 patients who reported obsessive-compulsive disorder as a comorbidity, 67% reported an improvement, 22% reported no change, and 11% reported worsening of obsessive-compulsive disorder.
– Motor and vocal tics – No significant improvement was observed in motor and vocal tics.
– Side effects – The most frequent adverse events reported were dizziness (4 patients), increased appetite (3 patients), fatigue (3 patients) and dry mouth (3 patients).