Under state medical cannabis laws (MCL), physicians are recommending the use of cannabis to manage chronic pain. While chronic pain affects over 20 percent of US adults, there is limited or mixed evidence on the effectiveness of cannabis for chronic pain management. Physician recommendation of cannabis typically relies on knowledge of cannabis use and harms, perceptions of cannabis safety and efficacy, and cannabis legal status.
In a study in the Journal of General Internal Medicine, Dr. Sarah Gutkind, postdoctoral associate in population health sciences, Dr. Beth McGinty, chief of the Division of Health Policy and Economics and the Livingston Farrand Professor of Population Health Sciences, and Dr. Kayla N. Tormohlen, senior research associate in population health sciences, investigated whether a physician’s personal experience with cannabis impacts their perceptions and practices related to medical cannabis for chronic pain management.
Researchers used data from a cross-sectional online survey of clinically active physicians practicing in 36 states and Washington, DC, with MCLs in July and August 2023. Physicians’ cannabis use was measured in terms of whether they used it in their lifetime and whether it was for medical and/or recreational purposes.
Results indicate that among this sample, physicians’ lifetime cannabis use was associated with a higher likelihood of perceiving cannabis as safe and efficacious, recommending cannabis for chronic pain management, and accepting patients using cannabis.
“Importantly, this finding differed for physicians who had used cannabis medically versus recreationally,” said Dr. McGinty. “While physicians’ personal medical use was correlated with an increased perception of cannabis safety and efficacy, physicians reporting lifetime recreational use were less likely to perceive cannabis as effective for chronic pain management.”
“Our results suggest that lifetime cannabis use may influence physicians’ medical cannabis perceptions and clinical practices,” added Dr. Tormohlen.” Altogether, results indicate that in the absence of definitive evidence and guidance around medical cannabis use for chronic pain management, physicians’ personal cannabis experiences may influence the way they approach cannabis for chronic pain management.
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