Epilepsy treatment using cannabis continues to find new research options

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GW Pharmaceuticals is advancing studies on CBD’s effectiveness against epilepsy

Currently, GW Pharmaceuticals’ Epidiolex is the only cannabidiol (CBD) product in the US that has official Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for any use. However, many other companies, not wanting to be left behind in these races, are expanding their work on treatments to establish more effective cannabis-based epilepsy products. As more and more is becoming known about how effective this plant can be for this condition, more research options are coming to light.

Epidiolex is known to be a prescription medication for mitigating symptoms caused by Lennox-Gastaut syndrome, Dravet syndrome, and tuberous sclerosis complex. However, other global companies also want to get the green light from the government to use CBD and other cannabis-based treatments for epileptic diseases in children and adults. Although not many have had the same success as GW Pharma, different companies have reported promising results with respect to scientific research.

Avicanna, a Toronto-based company focused on cannabis-based epilepsy treatments, has been making several efforts in this area. Three months ago, the company announced that it had filed a US patent application for epilepsy treatment methods based on different cannabinoid formulations. A press release from Avicanna stated, “Preliminary electrophysiological studies on seizure-induced wildtype mouse cortical slices determined that treatment with the Formulation Candidate produced significant anticonvulsant effects as compared to treatment with cannabidiol (‘CBD’) or tetrahydrocannabinol (‘THC’) alone.”

Research related to the use of cannabis in epilepsy is becoming more extensive, which is always good for the medical industry seeking to mitigate its strong symptoms by means of a natural and highly effective alternative.