12-07-2016, 12:23 PM
Marijuana derivative CBD may help with hard-to-treat epilepsyBy Amy Norton, HealthDay News | Dec. 6, 2016
TUESDAY, Dec. 6, 2016 -- A purified oral version of a marijuana compound may help with treatment-resistant forms of epilepsy, two new clinical trials show.
The researchers found that the compound, cannabidiol (CBD), helped reduce seizure frequency in children and adults with two hard-to-treat forms of epilepsy: Dravet syndrome and Lennox-Gastaut syndrome.
The drug is still experimental, and doctors stressed that it did not help everyone and is not a "cure."
On the other hand, they called the results "very encouraging," given how difficult it is to manage the seizure disorders.
"It's always a good day when we have a potential new option to offer these patients," said Dr. Amy Brooks-Kayal, a pediatric neurologist at Children's Hospital Colorado who was not involved in the research.
She had another caveat, however: The CBD used in the trials is a "purified, pharmaceutical-grade" pill.
"This is very different from medical marijuana," Brooks-Kayal said.
Dr. Elizabeth Thiele, one of the researchers who worked on the two trials, made the same point. She said the drug is "very distinct" from marijuana, which contains hundreds of different compounds.
CBD is one of the main compounds, but it does not produce a "high," explained Thiele, who directs the pediatric epilepsy program at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.
Researchers have become interested in testing CBD for treating epilepsy based on studies showing it has anti-seizure properties. Exactly how it works is not yet clear, said Thiele, who also serves as a consultant to GW Pharmaceuticals, the company developing CBD as prescription medication.
Epilepsy is a neurological disorder in which disruptions in the brain's electrical activity trigger seizures. Just over 2 million Americans have the condition, according to the Epilepsy Foundation.
There are many different forms of epilepsy, with Dravet syndrome and Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (LGS) being fairly uncommon.
Only about 2 percent to 5 percent of children with epilepsy have LGS -- which usually involves intellectual impairment along with seizures, the Epilepsy Foundation says. Dravet syndrome is a rare genetic condition that begins in infancy, causing severe seizures and, most often, developmental problems.
Both disorders are tough to control -- even with multiple medications, special diets and other approaches, Thiele said.
For one of the new trials, she and her colleagues randomly assigned 120 children with Dravet syndrome to either have CBD or a placebo added to their standard anti-seizure medication. After 14 weeks, children on CBD saw a 39 percent reduction in their seizure frequency, on average -- versus 13 percent in the placebo group.
The other trial involved 171 children and adults with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome who were randomly assigned to take either CBD or a placebo with their usual medication.
The results were similar: After 14 weeks, the CBD group experienced a 44 percent reduction in seizures, compared to 22 percent in the placebo group.
Both studies were presented Sunday at the American Epilepsy Society's annual meeting, in Houston. They were two of,....
<a data-ipb="nomediaparse" href="http://www.upi.com/Health_News/2016/12/06/Marijuana-derivative-CBD-may-help-with-hard-to-treat-epilepsy/2141481059229/">http://www.upi.com/Health_News/2016/12/06/Marijuana-derivative-CBD-may-help-with-hard-to-treat-epilepsy/2141481059229/</a>
TUESDAY, Dec. 6, 2016 -- A purified oral version of a marijuana compound may help with treatment-resistant forms of epilepsy, two new clinical trials show.
The researchers found that the compound, cannabidiol (CBD), helped reduce seizure frequency in children and adults with two hard-to-treat forms of epilepsy: Dravet syndrome and Lennox-Gastaut syndrome.
The drug is still experimental, and doctors stressed that it did not help everyone and is not a "cure."
On the other hand, they called the results "very encouraging," given how difficult it is to manage the seizure disorders.
"It's always a good day when we have a potential new option to offer these patients," said Dr. Amy Brooks-Kayal, a pediatric neurologist at Children's Hospital Colorado who was not involved in the research.
She had another caveat, however: The CBD used in the trials is a "purified, pharmaceutical-grade" pill.
"This is very different from medical marijuana," Brooks-Kayal said.
Dr. Elizabeth Thiele, one of the researchers who worked on the two trials, made the same point. She said the drug is "very distinct" from marijuana, which contains hundreds of different compounds.
CBD is one of the main compounds, but it does not produce a "high," explained Thiele, who directs the pediatric epilepsy program at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.
Researchers have become interested in testing CBD for treating epilepsy based on studies showing it has anti-seizure properties. Exactly how it works is not yet clear, said Thiele, who also serves as a consultant to GW Pharmaceuticals, the company developing CBD as prescription medication.
Epilepsy is a neurological disorder in which disruptions in the brain's electrical activity trigger seizures. Just over 2 million Americans have the condition, according to the Epilepsy Foundation.
There are many different forms of epilepsy, with Dravet syndrome and Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (LGS) being fairly uncommon.
Only about 2 percent to 5 percent of children with epilepsy have LGS -- which usually involves intellectual impairment along with seizures, the Epilepsy Foundation says. Dravet syndrome is a rare genetic condition that begins in infancy, causing severe seizures and, most often, developmental problems.
Both disorders are tough to control -- even with multiple medications, special diets and other approaches, Thiele said.
For one of the new trials, she and her colleagues randomly assigned 120 children with Dravet syndrome to either have CBD or a placebo added to their standard anti-seizure medication. After 14 weeks, children on CBD saw a 39 percent reduction in their seizure frequency, on average -- versus 13 percent in the placebo group.
The other trial involved 171 children and adults with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome who were randomly assigned to take either CBD or a placebo with their usual medication.
The results were similar: After 14 weeks, the CBD group experienced a 44 percent reduction in seizures, compared to 22 percent in the placebo group.
Both studies were presented Sunday at the American Epilepsy Society's annual meeting, in Houston. They were two of,....
<a data-ipb="nomediaparse" href="http://www.upi.com/Health_News/2016/12/06/Marijuana-derivative-CBD-may-help-with-hard-to-treat-epilepsy/2141481059229/">http://www.upi.com/Health_News/2016/12/06/Marijuana-derivative-CBD-may-help-with-hard-to-treat-epilepsy/2141481059229/</a>