Abstract
A shocking population of Americans and Canadians succumb to opioid addiction daily. In response to this, various interventions including pharmaceutical therapies have been put in place to address overdose prevention. However, the adoption of pharmaceutical interventions such as the use of buprenorphine, α2-adrenergic agonists, and antiemetic’s pose the risk of harmful drug interaction and overdose. As such, Cannabis sativa (marijuana) is considered an adjunct therapy for opioid addiction due to its safety and efficacy. The present paper explores the benefits and potential effects of marijuana as a therapeutic option in treating opioid addiction. The study conducted a systematic literature review of published journals in America and Canada related to the use of marijuana for management of opioid addiction. Medical databases such as CINAHL, Cochrane, and PubMed were used to identify peer-reviewed articles between 2014 and 2018. The PRISMA flow diagram was used to identify and document the number of articles eligible for the research. 1,608 records were identified out of which 30 full-text articles were screened for eligibility. Out of the 30 items, 10 full-text articles met the inclusion criteria. These reported the safety and efficacy of the use of medical cannabis in managing opioid addiction. In essence, marijuana suppresses cravings induced by opiates and controls opioid withdrawal syndromes. However, cannabis may result in non-serious effects such as disorientation, lethargy, hallucinations, and confusion. The current literature review concludes that the use of marijuana for opioid addiction is safe and effective. Certainly, insufficient literature is available to establish the benefits and harms of medical cannabis as a therapy option for opioid addiction.
Highlights
BackgroundThe use of opioids dramatically increased during the 1990s following relaxed regulations on the need for the drug to function in pain management
In one study for opioid addicted patients enrolled in a medical cannabis program (MCP), a 21 month of observation yielded a positive outcome
MCP was related to 17.27 odds of ceasing compulsive use of prescription opioids (CI of 1.89 to 157.36, and p=0.012) [7]
Summary
The use of opioids dramatically increased during the 1990s following relaxed regulations on the need for the drug to function in pain management. In the United States, prescription opioid-related overdoses stand as the current leading incidences of preventable deaths. Canada is reported to have had about 2,400 incidences of opioid-related deaths in 2016 alone [2]. As such, following these incidences, it is apparent that the use of prescription opioids are associated with addiction that pits more harm on the use of the drug for pain management compared to its benefits. A growing toll related to the opioid dependence in the United States, Canada, and the world as a whole necessitates a diversity of novel harm-reduction interventions
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