Study register · detailMeta-Analyse · Tourette Syndrome · 2021
Potential therapeutic benefits of cannabinoid products in adult psychiatric disorders: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials
McKee et al.·Journal of Psychiatric ResearchImpact 3.0
No benefit demonstratedGRADEHigh39 citations
Samplek = 31 Studien
Durationup to September 2020
ControlPlacebo
EndpointPsychiatric symptom severity
Blindingunklar
DesignMeta-Analyse
”Key finding
Limited evidence for acute efficacy on individual psychiatric symptoms, no evidence for medium-term to long-term efficacy of cannabinoid products in psychiatric disorders in adulthood.
Summary
Systematic review of k=31 RCTs on cannabinoid products in psychiatric disorders (databases up to September 2020). For Tourette disorder: 2 RCTs identified. The review finds limited evidence for acute symptom improvement in a narrow spectrum of psychiatric symptoms; no evidence for medium- to long-term efficacy. Quality of evidence overall low to moderate.
P
PopulationAdults with diagnosed psychiatric disorders (including cannabis use disorder, schizophrenia, anxiety disorders, PTSD, Tourette syndrome, anorexia nervosa, ADHD, OCD), pooled from 31 RCTs
I
InterventionCannabinoids and cannabinoid-based products (CBPs, various substances and modes of administration)
C
ControlPlacebo (in the included RCTs)
O
OutcomeLimited evidence for acute treatment of a narrow spectrum of psychiatric symptoms; no evidence for medium- to long-term efficacy; quality of evidence low to moderate
Confidence in the evidence
Very lowLowModerateHigh
High
The highest of four GRADE levels, the effect estimate is very reliable.
The utility of cannabinoids and cannabinoid-based products (CBPs) as a pharmacological aid to treat psychiatric disorders in adulthood is still poorly understood despite a number of comprehensive general reviews discussing the topic. With a focus on randomized controlled trial (RCT) data, this review and meta-analysis aimed to aggregate and evaluate all current high-quality (Level-1) research that specifically assessed the effectiveness of a CBP on a diagnosed adult psychiatric disorder. The following databases, from their inception to September 2020, were included in the search: Academic Search Premier, PubMed, Ovid MEDLINE(R), Web of Science, PsycARTICLES, PsycINFO, CINAHL (Nursing and Allied Health), and Scopus. Risk of bias for each study was individually assessed using the revised Cochrane tool. Of the 2397 papers identified, thirty-one RCTs met criteria for inclusion: ten trials focused on treating cannabis use disorder, six on schizophrenia, five on opioid/tobacco use disorder, three on anxiety disorders, two on Tourette's disorder, two on anorexia nervosa, and one trial each for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, posttraumatic stress disorder, and obsessive compulsive disorder. This review finds limited evidence for the effectiveness of CBPs to acutely treat a narrow range of psychiatric symptoms. We report no evidence supporting the mid- to long-range effectiveness of any currently available CBP. In general, quality of the evidence was assessed as low- to moderate. Importantly, none of the studies discussed in this review presently endorse the use of cannabis flower as a method of treatment for any recognized psychiatric disorder. Larger, hypothesis driven RCTs are required prior to making further therapeutic recommendations.