Survey of the use of cannabidiol in questioned parents in Mexican children with refractory epilepsy
- 53 children from Mexico and Latin American countries who suffered from refractory epilesia were examined for medical cannabis results.
- Parents mostly agree on positive effects, cannabis helped to relieve convulsions, in some cases the seizures disappeared completely.
Survey progress
A structured online questionnaire was used to explore the experience of parents of children with refractory epilepsy using medical cannabis in Mexico in September 2016.
The results that were completed in full and 53 cases of children aged 9 months to 18 years were examined. Of these, 43 cases (82%) were from Mexico and 10 (18%) from Latin American countries.
Of 43 Mexican cases, children had the following diagnoses: 20 cases (47%) had Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (LGS), 13 cases (30%) had non-specific refractory epilepsy (URE), 8 cases (19%) had Western syndrome (WS) , 1 case (2%) had Doose's syndrome (DS) and 1 case (2%) had Ohtahar's syndrome (OS). A total of 47.1% of cases were previously treated with 9 or more anticonvulsant therapies.
Were the effects of medical cannabis positive?
Parents reported a decrease in convulsions if the child was taking cannabidiol in 81.3% of cases, a slight to significant decrease occurred in 51% of cases and 16% of cases were without seizure. The number of antiepileptic drugs used was reduced in 9/43 (20.9%) cases.
No serious side effects have been reported, with only mild side effects, such as increased appetite or sleep changes, have a 42% case
Sources: study