Cannabis Proven As An Effective Treatment For Rare Form of Epilepsy

Research has recently proven what many parents of children with Dravet Syndrome already know: marijuana reduces the frequency of seizures.

Dravet Syndrome is a rare form of epilepsy, which kills 20 percent of sufferers by age 20, reports the article. Several who suffer from the illness are children, and their parents are advocates for medical marijuana. However, parents who administer cannabis-based medication — and have seen the beneficial results — risk prosecution.

Now, the medical community has rigorous, solid evidence to add to the legitimacy of cannabis-based treatments.

The study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine in May, saw the amount of seizures reduced by more than half (from 12.4 to 5.9 per week) in participants who received 20 mg doses of CBD (a non-psychoactive chemical compound found in cannabis) over a 14-week period. Five percent even saw seizures disappear completely. Participants who did not receive CBD, and instead received a placebo, saw no significant reduction in frequency of seizures (seizures dropped from 14.9 to 14.1 per week).

The treatment, however, came with side effects, which included severe diarrhea, fever and fatigue, and caused some participants to withdraw from the study.

Still, this is a major step in the right direction for the medical community, for patients, and for parents who use or administer medical marijuana. With scientific proof that the chemical compounds in cannabis are beneficial to those with Dravet Syndrome, more research is needed to conclude its effects on other types of epilepsy.