Medicinal cannabis
What is medicinal cannabis for bipolar disorder?
Countries are increasingly allowing cannabis derivatives such as cannabinoids (tetrahydrocannabinol [THC] and cannabidiol [CBD]) to be made available for medicinal purposes, including for the treatment of mental disorders. Medicinal cannabis refers to any part of the cannabis plant, such as flowers, buds, leaves, or full plant extracts. Pharmaceutical cannabinoids refer to pharmaceutical-grade medicinal extracts with defined and standardized THC, CBD, or a combination of both and synthetic cannabinoid derivatives. This topic assesses the effectiveness of both medicinal cannabis and pharmaceutical cannabinoids for bipolar disorder.
What is the evidence for medicinal cannabis?
Moderate to low quality evidence finds no improvement in depression symptoms with THC compared to placebo. There was more sedation, anxiety, panic, depersonalization, and psychotic disturbances with THC.
November 2021
Image: ©Ilya – stock.adobe.com
Last updated at: 5:55 pm, 11th November 2021
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Fact Sheet Technical Commentary
Fact Sheet Technical Commentary
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Medicinal cannabis
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Antecedents
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Illness course and outcomes
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- Age at onset
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- Criminal offending, aggression and violence
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- Drug and alcohol use
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- Psychotic relapse
- Quality of care
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- Relationships
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- Remission and recovery
- Sex differences
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- Stigma and attitudes towards mental health
- Suicide and self-harm
- Treatment adherence
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- Insights for families
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Physical features
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Functional changes
- Body functioning
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Biochemical changes
- Brain pH and lactate
- cAMP
- Cholesterol
- Dopamine
- Endocannabinoids
- GABA
- Hormonal changes
- Hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis
- Infectious agents
- Inflammation and the immune system
- Lipids
- Neurometabolites
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- NMDA receptor function
- Oxidative stress
- S100 Proteins
- Serotonin
- Synaptic proteins
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- Vitamin B
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- Cerebral blood flow and metabolism
- Electrophysiology
- Structural changes
- Brain regions
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Functional changes
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Co-occurring conditions
- Mental disorders
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Physical disorders
- Auditory system dysfunction
- Autoimmune diseases
- Blood disorders
- Cancer
- Cerebrovascular disease
- Dementia
- Dental disease
- Diabetes
- Digestive disorders
- Epilepsy
- Heart disease
- Infectious diseases
- Metabolic syndrome
- Musculoskeletal and connective tissues
- Obesity
- Optical alterations
- Peripheral vascular disease
- Polycistic ovary syndrome
- Postoperative complications
- Reproductive and urological disorders
- Respiratory system dysfunction
- Sexual dysfunction
- Skin disorders
- Sleep apnea
- Thyroid disorders
- Underweight
- Venous thromboembolism
- Substance use
-
Incidence and prevalence
- General
- Incidence
-
Prevalence
- Prevalence in children
- Prevalence in elderly people
- Prevalence in forensic settings
- Prevalence in homeless populations
- Prevalence in indigenous populations
- Prevalence in inpatients
- Prevalence in males vs. females
- Prevalence in migrants
- Prevalence in refugees
- Prevalence in veterans and conflict settings
- Spatial variation in prevalence
- Worldwide prevalence
- General information
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Green - Topic summary is available.
Orange - Topic summary is being compiled.
Red - Topic summary has no current systematic review available.