Clinical and psychosocial changes in adults with opioid use disorder and chronic pain using medical cannabis: a brief report.

Authors

Michelle R. Lent, Philadelphia College of Osteopathic MedicineFollow
Ryan Keen
Michael Ruiz, Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine
Hannah R Callahan, Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine
Katherine E. Galluzzi, Philadelphia College of Osteopathic MedicineFollow
Karen L Dugosh

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

6-18-2025

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Medical cannabis (MC) is approved for the treatment of opioid use disorder (OUD) in Pennsylvania, but little is known about how MC impacts illicit opioid use or the clinical and psychosocial factors including pain severity levels that can precede illicit opioid use. This observational study examined the extent to which changes in rates of illicit opioid use and in pain and psychosocial functioning were observed following the first three months of MC treatment.

METHODS: A referred sample of 47 adults taking buprenorphine/naloxone for OUD with a minimum pain severity rating of 5/10 enrolled from March 2022-April 2023. Participants were recruited from an outpatient MC physician recommender's office and were offered a discounted MC 1:1 tetrahydrocannabinol:cannabidiol 5 mg:5 mg daily oral capsule. The primary study outcomes were pain severity, self-efficacy and interference, and the rates of illicit substance use as assessed via urine drug screening (UDS).

RESULTS: Participants (64% male, 49% Black, average age = 44 years) reported significant decreases in pain severity from baseline (M = 5.18, SD = 2.09) to Month 3 (M = 4.39, SD = 2.28), P <  0.01, Cohen's d = 0.54, and pain interference from baseline (M = 5.21, SD = 2.79) to Month 3 (M = 4.32, SD = 2.86), P <  0.01, Cohen's d = 0.47, and increases in pain-related self-efficacy from baseline (M = 6.55, SD = 3.57) to Month 3 (M = 8.05, SD = 3.30), P <  0.01, Cohen's d = 0.44. Rates of opioid use (X

CONCLUSION: MC treatment initiation was associated with reductions in pain severity and interference and improvements in quality of life and sleep quality, but not in illicit opioid use or cravings in adults with chronic pain receiving buprenorphine/naloxone for OUD.

Publication Title

Journal of Cannabis Research

Volume

7

Issue

1

PubMed ID

40533856

Comments

This article was published in Journal of Cannabis Research, Volume 7, Issue 1.

The published version is available at https://doi.org/10.1186/s42238-025-00297-5.

Copyright © 2025 The Author(s). CC BY 4.0.

Recommended Citation

Lent, Michelle R.; Keen, Ryan; Ruiz, Michael; Callahan, Hannah R; Galluzzi, Katherine E.; and Dugosh, Karen L, "Clinical and psychosocial changes in adults with opioid use disorder and chronic pain using medical cannabis: a brief report." (2025). PCOM Scholarly Works. 2319.
https://digitalcommons.pcom.edu/scholarly_papers/2319 DOI: https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1186/s42238-025-00297-5