1. The State of Synthetic Cannabinoid Medications for the Treatment of Pain.
- Author
-
Maglaviceanu, Anca, Peer, Miki, Rockel, Jason, Bonin, Robert P., Fitzcharles, Mary-Ann, Ladha, Karim S., Bhatia, Anuj, Leroux, Timothy, Kotra, Lakshmi, Kapoor, Mohit, and Clarke, Hance
- Subjects
- *
PAIN management , *SYNTHETIC marijuana , *CANCER chemotherapy , *ANALGESICS , *DRUGS , *IMMUNOLOGICAL deficiency syndromes , *POSTOPERATIVE pain - Abstract
Synthetic cannabinoids are compounds made in the laboratory to structurally and functionally mimic phytocannabinoids from the
Cannabis sativa L. plant, including delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). Synthetic cannabinoids (SCs) can signal via the classical endogenous cannabinoid system (ECS) and the greater endocannabidiome network, highlighting their signalling complexity and far-reaching effects. Dronabinol and nabilone, which mimic THC signalling, have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for treating nausea associated with cancer chemotherapy and/or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). However, there is ongoing interest in these two drugs as potential analgesics for a variety of other clinical conditions, including neuropathic pain, spasticity-related pain, and nociplastic pain syndromes including fibromyalgia, osteoarthritis, and postoperative pain, among others. In this review, we highlight the signalling mechanisms of FDA-approved synthetic cannabinoids, discuss key clinical trials that investigate their analgesic potential, and illustrate challenges faced when bringing synthetic cannabinoids to the clinic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]- Published
- 2024
- Full Text
- View/download PDF