Israel Study Finds CBD Is “Highly Effective” In Adults With Refractory Epilepsy

When it comes to medical cannabis, arguably the most effective way that cannabis can be used is in cannabidiol (CBD) form to treat refractory epilepsy. Cannabis can effectively treat a number of conditions, however, it seems to be particularly useful among epilepsy patients.

CBD’s ability to successfully treat refractory epilepsy among child patients has received a lot of media attention in recent years, and for good reason. When pharmaceutical medications fail parents turn to CBD which is non-toxic and does not induce intoxication, and in a vast majority of cases, it proves to be a tremendous form of treatment.

Cannabidiol is also effective at treating adult patients that suffer from refractory epilepsy according to a new study out of Israel. Below is more information about it via a news release from NORML:

Tel Aviv, Israel: Adults with treatment-resistant focal epilepsy (epilepsy characterized by seizures arising from a specific part of the brain) respond favorably to the adjunctive use of plant-derived CBD dominant cannabis extracts, according to data published in the journal Neurological Sciences.

A Colombian investigator assessed the efficacy of high CBD/low THC extracts in a cohort of epileptic patients. Of those who maintained a cannabis-treatment regimen for at least three months, 80 percent experienced a greater than 50 percent reduction in seizure frequency at 12 weeks. Only a minority of patients reported any side-effects.

“The reduction in seizures frequency is maintained over time.” the study’s author concluded.  “The CBMF (cannabis-based magistral formulation) is a highly effective and safe therapy to treat adult patients with DRFE (drug resistant focal epilepsy).”

Israeli data published in June similarly reported that children with refractory forms of epilepsy experience significant reductions in seizure frequency following the long-term use of plant-derived CBD extracts.

In 2018, the US Food and Drug Administration granted market approval to Epidiolex, a prescription medicine containing a standardized formulation of plant-derived cannabidiol for the treatment of two rare forms of severe epilepsy: Lennox-Gastaut syndrome and Dravet syndrome. Shortly after approval, the US Drug Enforcement Administration reclassified Epidiolex to Schedule V of the US Controlled Substances Act — the lowest restriction classification available under federal law.

Full text of the study, “Cannabis based magistral formulation is highly effective as an adjuvant treatment in drug-resistant focal epilepsy in adult patients: An open-label prospective cohort study,” appears in Neurological Sciences. Additional information on cannabis and epilepsy is available from NORML.