Medical Cannabis for Back Pain and Sciatica

Medical Cannabis for Back Pain and Sciatica

Sciatica, or pain caused by a problem with the sciatic nerve, can be debilitating. The main cause of sciatica is a compressed nerve in the lower spine, but anything that irritates this nerve can cause pain, ranging from mild to severe. Experts estimate that 40% of people will suffer from sciatica at some point in their lives.

Sciatica causes pain in the hips, buttocks, and legs (usually on one side only). Patients who work in occupations that require them to lift a lot or sit for long periods of time are most likely to develop sciatica. Furthermore, they could be obese or diabetic patients.

Treatment Options

There are many ways to treat sciatica since it affects so many people. The options range from over-the-counter and prescription painkillers to stretching and exercises, physical therapy, and surgery in extreme cases.

In recent years, hemp-derived cannabis has gained popularity as an alternative treatment for sciatica.

In order to treat nerve pain, opioids are often prescribed. There are some serious risks associated with opioid drugs, including addiction and fatal overdoses.

Research

According to another article in the Journal of Opioid Management, medical cannabis could also be used with opioids. The patient could then take opioids less frequently or in lower doses to treat their pain.

Medical cannabis may be an effective way to treat nerve pain, according to recent studies. According to one study, THC reduces certain brain connections. THC may help with sciatica pain by messing up signals between the brain’s pain pathways.

CBD can reduce inflammation, so people with sciatica who are worried about getting high from THC may find relief from their pain by taking CBD. It may reduce pain by decreasing inflammation at the site of the injury.

What is the most effective way to treat sciatica with cannabis?

If you think that cannabis might help your sciatica pain, you must get a proper diagnosis from a doctor. You will work with a cannabis counsellor if medical cannabis is determined to be a viable treatment option. Identification of the right amount of THC and CBD and the most effective way to deliver it to the patient.

Chronic pain is one of the NHS’s and patients’ most troublesome and costly problems. According to a recent survey conducted by The British Pain Society, chronic pain affects more than 40% of the UK population, implying that more than 26 million people in the country are suffering from pain that has lasted three months or more. According to the BMJ, this number might grow to as high as 60% among individuals over the age of 75.

How can medical cannabis help with back pain and sciatica?

Another sort of potential symptom relief is medical cannabis. Medicinal cannabis has been demonstrated to be useful in the treatment of a variety of pain-related conditions. A study published in 2019 in the United States indicated that people with chronic pain who were treated with medicinal cannabis experienced a significant reduction in pain symptoms.

Opioids are often a common choice for helping with chronic pain. Medical cannabis is already being put forward by experts as an alternative medication to opioids, reducing the risk of developing a dependency and other unwanted side-effects. What’s more, this study from 2012 states that cannabis can help lead to a greater cumulative relief of pain. That means fewer opiates are used and reduces the impact of the associated side-effects.

Our support specialist doctors at CPGUK seek to raise awareness about how medical cannabis can help those faced with sciatica and back pain.

Sadly, patients are frequently directed to opioid medicines as part of their treatment. According to a recent report published by Public Health England, the United Kingdom now has the world’s fastest-growing rate of opioid addiction, with prescriptions climbing by 22% in the last decade to 40 million each year. This is despite NHS guidelines stating that opioids should not be used for more than a few weeks at a time since they can lead to addiction. Furthermore, health professionals have warned that opioid medicines are ineffective for 90% of those suffering from chronic pain.

An estimated 540,000 Britons are addicted to opioids as a result of the UK’s chronic pain problem.

According to a YouGov poll commissioned by the Centre for Medicinal Cannabis in November 2019, about 1.4 million people in the UK use cannabis illegally for medical reasons on a regular basis. People are purchasing cannabis outside of the law to treat chronic health ailments due to the UK’s refusal to prescribe cannabis to patients.

FAQ

What are the symptoms of back pain and sciatica?

If you have chronic back pain (pain that lasts more than three months), it’s a clue that something more serious is going on. Sciatica has its own set of symptoms that should alert you if you are suffering from it. The bottom, legs, or feet of a person may experience any of the following sensations:

  • Pains that stab, burn, or shoot
  • Pins and needles-like tingling
  • Numbness
  • Weakness

When sneezing or coughing, these symptoms may get worse. They are frequently encountered in conjunction with back pain, but the other symptoms progressively dominate and become more severe than the back pain. It’s unlikely that you have sciatica if you merely experience back discomfort.

What causes back pain and sciatica?

Sciatica can be caused by a number of different things. The condition arises when something presses or rubs against the sciatic nerve. This can be triggered by:

  • A slipped disc occurs when a delicate cushion of tissue between the bones in your spine slips out.
  • Spondylolisthesis occurs when one of your spine’s bones slips out of place. The narrowing of the portion of your spine through which nerves pass is known as spinal stenosis.
  • A distinct kind of back problem

Certain lifestyle choices can also increase a person’s chances of developing sciatica. These are some of them:

  • Being idle
  • Lifting big objects in an unsafe manner
  • Long durations of time spent sitting or standing with poor posture
  • Being overweight is a problem

What treatment options are available for back pain and sciatica?

Sciatica usually recovers on its own after four to six weeks. However, there are a few things you can do to expedite the healing process and prevent it from happening again:

  • To keep yourself physically occupied, try to maintain as much of your daily activities as possible.
  • Activities for sciatica treatment should be done on a regular basis.
  • Begin mild activity as soon as you are able.
  • Heat packs are applied to the affected areas.
  • Prescription or over-the-counter pain medications, such as ibuprofen (paracetamol on its own is unlikely to relieve the pain)
  • Place a small, firm cushion between your knees if you’re sleeping on your side, and multiple firm cushions beneath your knees if you’re sleeping on your back.

If sciatica lasts longer than four to six weeks, the patient should visit a doctor. They’ll be able to provide more radical therapy options to help manage symptoms, such as:

  • Stretches and physiotherapy exercises
  • Painkillers on prescription
  • Psychological support to help with pain management
  • Injections to relieve pain
  • A surgery that seals off portions of your back’s nerves, preventing them from sending pain signals
  • Decompression surgery is a surgical procedure that can occasionally help treat sciatica