The Use of Medical Marijuana to Manage Symptom Burden in Spinal Cord Injury

By Gregory T. Carter, MD, MS

Medical Director, St. Luke's Rehabilitation Institute, Spokane, Washington, and faculty, University of Washington Medical School

The national conversation about cannabis (marijuana) is changing rapidly, and many people with SCI would like to know more about its use as a medical treatment for pain and other symptoms. In this forum presentation, Dr. Carter discusses the history of medical cannabis in the U.S., the physiological effects of cannabis, and the current scientific evidence regarding the safety and effectiveness of cannabis as a treatment for neuropathic pain when used under a physician's supervision. Watch the video or read the report, below.

Introduction

Marijuana (cannabis) is much in the news today. Medical marijuana, although still illegal under federalused for medicinal purposes for thousands of years. It was first brought into western medicine in the 1840s by an English surgeon who learned about it in his travels through the Middle East.

For several decades cannabis was regularly prescribed by physicians in the U.S. and dispensed at pharmacies as a tincture or tonic for “nerve pain.” Beginning in 1937 the federal government started taxing and restricting its use, in spite of objections by the American Medical Association. In 1951 cannabis was classified as a narcotic, and finally in 1970 it was classified as a schedule 1 drug (like heroin and LSD), meaning it is considered dangerous and without accepted medicinal use. It has remained in this classification despite favorable findings from various government-appointed commissions on cannabis over the