Pot-based prescription drug looks for FDA OK (first pharmaceutical developed from raw marijuana)

[RainDog]

35. here's more info

http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn6387-cannabis-truly-helps-multiple-sclerosis-sufferers.html

Cannabis truly helps multiple sclerosis sufferers

Compared with those on placebos, patients who received active compounds said they both felt less pain and less muscle spasticity - the spasms characteristic of this neurodegenerative disease.

the researchers worried that some who received the active compound and not the placebo were aware and elevated mood would cause them to report based upon that rather than spasticity. so...

...When the short-term study ended....the researchers gave all subjects the opportunity to continue their treatment for a full year. The team wanted to extend the study to gather information on the safety of long-term cannabinoid use.

More than 500 patients agreed to stay on their original treatment. One group took pills of D9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the active ingredient in cannabis. The second group received natural cannabis extract, and the third group took a placebo.

At the end of the 12 month period, the patients were evaluated again using the same measures as in the first study. But this time, physiotherapists saw a marked improvement for subjects on active drugs. They had reduced muscle spasticity and an improved overall score for their level of disability.

A meta-analysis of the safety and efficacy of Sativex for patients using it for MS indicated it did reduce spasms
http://msj.sagepub.com/content/16/6/707.abstract