Cannabis can help treat traumatic brain injuries

As with many other types of injury and disease, in traumatic brain injury (TBI), the immune response causes excessive inflammation around the affected tissue, and it is this reaction that often causes long-term damage. Given the role of the endocannabinoid system in regulating such immune responses and cannabis’ ability to suppress inflammation, researchers are now increasingly looking to marijuana as a potential treatment for TBI. * When a TBI occurs, the immune system goes into action to clean up the damaged cells through inflammation. While this is necessary for healing, too much inflammation can actually damage more surrounding tissue, making the injury worse and increasing the chances of brain damage or even death. * Natural cannabinoids in the body – or endocannabinoids – are therefore called upon to maintain this inflammation. In particular, an endocannabinoid called 2-arachidonoylglycerol (2-AG) is recruited to the site of injury, where it modulates the immune response and limits inflammation. However, this mechanism is often deactivated because damaged cells secrete an enzyme called monoacylglycerol lipase (MAGL), which breaks down 2-AG before it can do its job. * As a result, inflammation gets out of control in the days and weeks after TBI, often leading to severe tissue damage. Researchers are therefore looking for ways to inhibit MAGL immediately after such injury, and early research suggests that cannabidiol (CBD) may be an effective tool for this. For this reason, scientists at the Medical College of Georgia are now conducting a study on the effectiveness of CBD for the treatment of TBI. * The researchers behind the new study have plenty of evidence to support their hypothesis, given what we already know about the ability of CBD, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and other plant cannabinoids — or phytocannabinoids — to reduce inflammation and treat brain disorders and injuries. * As early as 1998, a study showed that both CBD and THC protected the brains of rats from damage when exposed to toxic levels of glutamate. Interestingly, it was found that this protective effect was completely independent of cannabinoid receptor activity, but instead was caused by the compounds’ antioxidant properties. * More recent research has shown that oral CBD significantly attenuates behavioral and neuropsychiatric dysfunctions associated with TBI in mice, including memory impairment, anxiety, aggression, and depression. One study found that treating rodents with 10 milligrams of CBD per kilogram of body weight restored many of the neurochemical imbalances caused by TBI while also triggering the formation of new neurons in the hippocampus, a key brain region associated with memory. * Human research has produced similar results. For example, a study published in December 2018 found that 80 percent of patients who received medical cannabis for TBI “had a significant improvement in activity level and symptoms.” The greatest improvement was seen in mood, sleep and headache symptoms, and those receiving marijuana also scored significantly higher on a quality of life test than other TBI patients who were not treated with cannabis. * Interestingly, the same study found that different cannabis chemicals and routes of administration were most effective in treating different symptoms. For example, a cannabis tincture containing THC to CBD in a 1:1 ratio was the best at treating the overall long-term symptoms of TBI, while acute head pain was most effectively relieved by vaping cannabis containing a THC to CBD ratio of 20: 1. * Given that TBI is one of the leading causes of death among young people worldwide, and that no pharmaceutical or surgical intervention can effectively limit inflammation following such injuries, the increasing use of medical cannabis could be life-saving.