Khak Mohammad, Ramtin Sina, Chung Juliet, Ilyas Asif M, Greis Ari
Rothman Institute Foundation for Opioid Research & Education, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States of America.
Rothman Orthopaedic Institute at Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States of America.
PLoS One. 2025 Aug 7;20(8):e0329897. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0329897. eCollection 2025.
Medical cannabis (MC) is increasingly used as a treatment for chronic musculoskeletal pain, but there is limited data on factors influencing its discontinuation. This study aims to investigate the rates of MC discontinuation and explore factors influencing it in patients with chronic musculoskeletal pain. A retrospective analysis was conducted on 78 patients certified for medical cannabis over a 2 year period. Patient demographics, pain origin, and Global Physical Health (GPH) and Global Mental Health (GMH) scores were collected before intervention. Discontinuation rates were measured at three-month and one-year follow-up. Statistical analyses, including Fisher's Exact Test and two-sample t-tests, were performed to assess associations between variables and discontinuation. The overall discontinuation rate of MC use was 57.9% at one year, with 44.7% of patients discontinuing within the first three months. Older age was significantly associated with higher discontinuation rates. Pain origin categories did not significantly differ between those who discontinued and continued MC use, although a higher proportion of patients in the discontinued group reported low back pain. No significant differences were observed in baseline GPH and GMH scores between the two groups. This study demonstrates a high discontinuation rate of MC use in patients for chronic musculoskeletal pain. The absence of significant differences in pain origin or baseline health scores suggests that factors beyond pain location or general health may contribute to the decision to discontinue MC. Further research is needed to explore the long-term effects of MC on pain management and patient outcomes.
医用大麻（MC）越来越多地被用作慢性肌肉骨骼疼痛的治疗方法，但关于影响其停用的因素的数据有限。本研究旨在调查慢性肌肉骨骼疼痛患者中MC的停用率，并探索影响其停用的因素。对78名在两年期间获得医用大麻认证的患者进行了回顾性分析。在干预前收集患者的人口统计学信息、疼痛来源以及全球身体健康（GPH）和全球心理健康（GMH）评分。在三个月和一年的随访中测量停用率。进行了包括Fisher精确检验和两样本t检验在内的统计分析，以评估变量与停用之间的关联。一年时MC使用的总体停用率为57.9%，44.7%的患者在头三个月内停用。年龄较大与较高的停用率显著相关。尽管停用组中报告下背痛的患者比例较高，但停用和继续使用MC的患者之间疼痛来源类别没有显著差异。两组之间的基线GPH和GMH评分没有观察到显著差异。本研究表明，慢性肌肉骨骼疼痛患者中MC的停用率很高。疼痛来源或基线健康评分没有显著差异，这表明除疼痛部位或一般健康状况之外的因素可能导致停用MC的决定。需要进一步研究以探索MC对疼痛管理和患者结局的长期影响。
