Cannabidiol may reduce difficult to control seizures
April 19, 2017American Academy has said that its clinical study found that taking cannabidiol may cut seizures in half for some children and adults with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (LGS), a severe form of epilepsy.
Neurology’s 69th Annual Meeting will take place in Boston on April 22 to 28, 2017, where more details will be given about the study, supported by developer of cannabidiol GW Pharmaceuticals, which works in United States as Greenwich Biosciences.
Cannabidiol is a molecule from the cannabis plant that does not have the psychoactive properties that create a “high.”
Academy said that almost 40% of people with LGS, which starts in childhood, had at least a 50 percent reduction in drop seizures when taking a liquid form of cannabidiol compared to 15 percent taking a placebo.
“Our study found that cannabidiol shows great promise in that it may reduce seizures that are otherwise difficult to control,” said study author Anup Patel, a member of the American Academy of Neurology.
Although the drop seizures of LGS are often very brief, they frequently lead to injury and trips to the hospital emergency room, so any reduction in drop seizure frequency is a benefit.
Furthermore, those receiving cannabidiol were up to 2.6 times more likely to say their overall condition had improved than those receiving the placebo, with up to 66 percent reporting improvement compared to 44 percent of those receiving the placebo.
“Our results suggest that cannabidiol may be effective for those with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome in treating drop seizures,” said Patel. “This is important because this kind of epilepsy is incredibly difficult to treat. While there were more side effects for those taking cannabidiol, they were mostly well-tolerated. I believe that it may become an important new treatment option for these patients.”
There is currently a plan to submit a New Drug Application to the FDA later this year, the Academy said.
