Medical Merijuana and Incontinence Posted: 02-02-08 02:12am
Urinary incontinence is defined as a loss
of bladder control. Incontinence can
result from several biological factors,
including weak bladder muscles and
inflammation, as well as from nerve damage
associated with diseases such as multiple
sclerosis (MS) and Parkinson’s disease.
More than one in ten Americans over age 65
is estimated to suffer from incontinence,
particularly women.
Several recent clinical trials indicate
that cannabinoid therapy may reduce
incidents of incontinence. Writing in the
February 2003 issue of the journal
Clinical Rehabilitation, investigators at
Oxford’s Centre for Enablement in
Britain reported that self-administered
doses of whole-plant cannabinoid extracts
improved bladder control compared to
placebo in patients suffering from MS and
spinal cord injury.
Investigators at London’s Institute for
Neurology followed up these initial
findings in an open-label pilot study of
cannabis-based extracts for bladder
dysfunction in 15 patients with advanced
multiple sclerosis. Following cannabinoid
therapy, “urinary urgency, the number of
and volume of incontinence episodes,
frequency and nocturia all decreased
significantly,” investigators
determined. “Cannabis-based medicinal
extracts are a safe and effective
treatment for urinary and other problems
in patients with advanced MS.
These findings were confirmed in 2006 in a
multi-center, randomized
placebo-controlled trial involving 630
patients administered oral doses of
cannabis extracts or THC. Researchers
reported that subjects administered
cannabis extracts experienced a 38 percent
reduction in incontinence episodes from
baseline to the end of treatment, while
patients administered THC experienced a 33
percent reduction, suggesting a
“clinical effect of cannabis on
incontinence episodes.
Most recently, preclinical data presented
at the 2006 annual meeting of the American
Urological Association indicated that
cannabis analogs can reduce bladder
inflammation and bladder over-activity in
animals.
In light of these findings, experts have
recommended the use of cannabinoids as
potential ‘second-line’ agents for
treating incontinence.
