Cannabis News Students for Sensible Drug Policy
  Alzheimer's Disease Covered Under M. Marijuana Act
Posted by FoM on June 16, 2000 at 07:47:29 PT
By Oz Hopkins Koglin of The Oregonian Staff  
Source: Oregon Live 

medical State health officials say the drug can be used to treat the agitation patients suffer, but experts say there's no evidence it will help.

The agitation caused by Alzheimer's disease has been added to the list of medical conditions covered under the Oregon Medical Marijuana Act.

The drug is not going to help the loss of memory and other intellectual capacities associated with the disease, said Dr. Grant Higginson, state health officer, but it may ease the agitation often associated with Alzheimer's.

The Oregon Health Division added agitation from Alzheimer's to the list after reviewing the recommendations of a seven-member panel of mental health specialists and a patient advocate. The Health Division also considered testimony, the medical literature and one research trial of 11 Alzheimer's patients who were treated with marijuana.

Oregon is one of only a few states to allow certain seriously ill people to use marijuana for medical conditions. This is the first time a mental health condition has been added to the coverage list.

"This is a strong step forward for advocates for patients with mental health conditions, to see that they are being taken seriously under the law," said Amy Klare, the patient advocate panel member and a lobbyist for a group that supported the medical marijuana act.

But representatives of the Alzheimer's Association, the only national voluntary health organization dedicated to the disease, say they have found no research supporting the use of marijuana in its treatment.

"It is too early to recommend or deny" the use of marijuana, said Liz McKinney, executive director of the Alzheimer's Association, Oregon Trail Chapter. The treatment of Alzheimer's disease requires extensive scientific study that would reveal both the drug's positive and unwanted effects, she said.

"That clearly has not happened, and we really couldn't endorse it at this point," McKinney said.

The Health Division is required to review any serious petitions seeking to add to the list of debilitating diseases that can be treated with marijuana, Higginson said.

The division rejected petitions Wednesday that would have led to approval of marijuana treatment for other mental conditions: anxiety, bipolar (manic/depressive) disorder, schizophrenia, schizo-affective disorder, post traumatic stress, insomnia and adult attention deficit disorder.

In Oregon, an estimated 68,000 people have Alzheimer's disease. Many of them suffer from agitation, which is the inability to settle down, restlessness and pacing that can lead to combativeness.

Bill Thies, vice president of medical scientific affairs for the Alzheimer's Association headquarters in Chicago, said that without clinical trials, "There is no way to make a benefit-risk analysis on marijuana in a patient."

Marijuana is not the only drug whose benefit for Alzheimer's disease hasn't been tested specifically.

Typically, Alzheimer's disease causes the kind of behavior that mimics other kinds of psychiatric conditions, so many doctors prescribe psychoactive drugs that have been approved for conditions other than Alzheimer's disease. "There is a limited amount of clinical trial data, so there is actually an ongoing debate about whether those are useful," Thies said.

Before agitation from Alzheimer's was added, eight conditions had been approved for medical marijuana use: cancer, glaucoma, HIV or AIDS, cacheixa, severe pain, severe nausea, seizures and persistent muscle spasms.

Under the 1998 act, Oregon doctors may write a statement supporting the use of medical marijuana for approved debilitating conditions allowing patients to get a registration card from the Health Division verifying that they can legally use marijuana. More than 700 patients have registered since May 1, 1999, and about 350 doctors have participated by writing supportive statements.

"So this is not a fringe medical issue," Higginson said. "This is something that a number of physicians are participating in, and we are unaware of any criminal prosecutions of people who have registration cards."

You can reach Oz Hopkins Koglin at 503-221-8376 or by e-mail at ozkoglin@news.oregonian.com.

Published: Thursday, June 15, 2000
Copyright 2000, Oregon Live ®

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Comment #1 posted by Chloe on June 19, 2000 at 22:17:01 PT:

marujuana
Hey
I was wondering what happened when you use marujuana for medical porpouses. CAn you become addictive and what are the risks?

See ya
Chloe


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