US House Narrowly Defeats Amendment to Allow VA Docs to Discuss Medical Marijuana

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WASHINGTON, DC — The United States House of Representatives voted 213-210 Thursday to defeat an amendment to allow doctors at Department of Veterans Affairs hospitals to discuss the use of medical marijuana with their patients.

A total of 175 Democrats and 35 Republicans voted in favor of the amendment, and 205 Republicans and 8 Democrats voted against it.  A similar amendment narrowly failed on the House floor last year by a vote of 195 to 222.

The appropriations amendment to the first fiscal 2016 appropriations bill of the year, which…

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Oklahoma Governor Signs Bill Authorizing Clinical Trials of CBD for Children with Epilepsy

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Gov. Mary Fallin signs bill to allow children with epilepsy access to CBD trials, but states “I will never support the legalization of marijuana in Oklahoma.”

OKLAHOMA CITY, OK — Oklahoma’s Republican Governor Mary Fallin signed House Bill 2154 into law on Thursday, authorizing a medical pilot program allowing the medically supervised use of cannabidiol (CBD) — a low THC non-intoxicating derivative of marijuana — for children with epilepsy.

House Bill 215, which passed the legislature earlier this month, will allow children…

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Study: Oral Cannabis Extracts Associated With Seizure Control In Children With Treatment-Resistant Epilepsy

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Study: Oral Cannabis Extracts Associated With Seizure Control In Children With Treatment-Resistant Epilepsy

The administration of oral cannabis extracts is associated with the mitigation of seizures in adolescents with epilepsy, according to clinical data published this month in the journal Epilepsy & Behavior.

Researchers from the Colorado Children’s Hospital in Denver performed a retrospective chart review of 75 children provided cannabis extracts. Authors reported that 57 percent of subjects showed some level of improvement in seizure control while 33 percent reported a greater than 50 percent reduction in seizure frequency.

Researchers also…

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Feds Seek to Increase Marijuana Production Quotas

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Feds Seek to Increase Marijuana Production Quotas

WASHINGTON, DC — For the second year in a row, federal officials are seeking to increase the supply of cannabis the government makes available for research protocols.

DEA Administrator Michele Leonhart filed paperwork Tuesday announcing that the agency is seeking to increase its marijuana production quota for the year 2015 by nearly three-fold.

Federal regulations permit a farm at the University of Mississippi to cultivate set quantities of cannabis for use in federally approved clinical trials.

Regulators at the DEA, the US Food and Drug…

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Study: Vaporized Cannabis Mitigates Treatment-Resistant Diabetic Neuropathy

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Study: Vaporized Cannabis Mitigates Treatment-Resistant Diabetic Neuropathy

Vaporized cannabis mitigates pain intensity in diabetic subjects in a dose-dependent manner, according to clinical trial data published online ahead of print in The Journal of Pain.

Investigators at the University of California, San Diego assessed the efficacy of inhaled cannabis versus placebo in 16 patients with painful diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN).

Authors reported:

“This small, short-term, placebo-controlled trial of inhaled cannabis demonstrated a dose-dependent reduction in diabetic peripheral neuropathy pain in patients with…

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Study: CBD Administration Enhances Skeletal Healing

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Study: CBD Administration Enhances Skeletal Healing

The administration of the non-psychotropic cannabinoid cannabidiol (CBD) leads to improvement in bone fracture healing, according to preclinical data published online ahead of print in the Journal of Bone and Mineral Research.

Investigators at the Hebrew University Bone Laboratory in Israel assessed the ability of CBD administration to promote healing in rats with mid-femoral fractures. Researchers reported, “CBD markedly enhanced the biomechanical properties of the healing femora after 8 weeks.”

Authors also evaluated the administration…

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Study: Parkinson’s Patients Report Subjective Relief From Cannabis

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Study: Parkinson’s Patients Report Subjective Relief From Cannabis

AURORA, CO — Patients with Parkinson’s self-report cannabis to be a highly efficacious alternative medicine in the treatment of the disease, according to survey data published online ahead of print in the journal Evidence-Based Complimentary and Alternative Medicine.

Investigators reported that cannabis use remains comparatively uncommon among patients with Parkinson’s disease. However, those respondents who acknowledged using the plant rated it as one of the “most effective” alternative treatment therapies available.

“Cannabis…

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Study: Plant-Derived Cannabinoid Extract More Efficacious Than Isolated Compound

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Study: Plant-Derived Cannabinoid Extract More Efficacious Than Isolated Compound

JERUSALEM — The administration of plant-derived cannabidiol(CBD) extracts provide greater efficacy in the treatment of pain and inflammation than does the use of a purified CBD alternative, according to preclinical data published online ahead of print in the journal Pharmacology & Pharmacy.

Investigators at the Hebrew University, Institute for Drug Research assessed the anti-inflammatory and anti-nociceptive activities of plant-derived CBD extracts in animals.

Researchers reported that extracts derived from a CBD-dominant strain of…

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