Possible therapeutic uses of cannabinoids

Over the past 20 years, patient interest in the medical use of cannabis and cannabinoids in various conditions has increased. At the same time, it is noticed an increased interest of the scientific community in researching the possible therapeutic use of cannabis and cannabinoids. The medical use of cannabis and cannabinoids includes a wide variety of preparations and products that may contain different active ingredients, in different concentrations and are used through different routes of administration. The discovery of synthetic cannabinoids and the endocannabinoid system, made possible the research of the therapeutic effects, and in the same time, the  toxicological profile of the cannabinoids. The scientific literature provides evidence of the therapeutic effects of cannabis and cannabinoids as an adjunctive treatment in severe forms of epilepsy, chronic pain (e.g., in cancer), nausea and vomiting associated with cancer chemotherapy, also to relieve symptoms of spasticity in patients with multiple sclerosis. A clear distinction should be made between different forms of cannabis preparations and cannabinoids for medical use which have a marketing authorisation issued by a regulatory competent authority and the products which do not have such marketing authorisation. Cannabis-based preparations refers to preparations and products derived from the Cannabis sativa plant, which do not have marketing authorization for medical use issued by a regulatory competent authority. These products are available in different forms and with variable content of compounds. Studies were conducted for various conditions e.g. diabetic retinopathy, tremor associated with multiple sclerosis, diabetes, fibromyalgia. These studies included the use of preparations and products derived from the Cannabis sativa plant, also a part of them included small number of subjects, making it difficult to compare and consequently to interpret the results. Still, a progress is noted in this area and medical use of cannabis and cannabinoids might offer promising therapeutic potential for the treatment of various conditions,  however, more research is needed in this area.