BrainWaves #100 Mary Jane in your medicine? The effect of THC on seizure prevention

MedLink Neurology Podcast is delighted to feature selected episodes from BrainWaves, courtesy of James E Siegler MD, its originator and host. BrainWaves is an academic audio podcast whose mission is to educate medical providers through clinical cases and topical reviews in neurology, medicine, and the humanities, and episodes originally aired from 2016 to 2021.

Originally released: March 8, 2018

Cigarettes can offset Parkinson disease. Alcohol can reduce the risk of heart attack. Can the case be made that marijuana has health benefits too?

Produced by James E Siegler. Music by Montplaisir and Kevin McLeod. Voiceover by Erika Mejia. BrainWaves' podcasts and online content are intended for medical education only and should not be used for clinical decision-making. Or, if you're a patient with seizures, this doesn't mean you should start smoking pot now. Be smart.

REFERENCES

Brodie MJ, Ben-Menachem E. Cannabinoids for epilepsy: What do we know and where do we go? Epilepsia 2018;59(2):291-6. PMID 29214639

Cunha JM, Carlini EA, Pereira AE, et al. Chronic administration of cannabidiol to healthy volunteers and epileptic patients. Pharmacology 1980;21(3):175-85. PMID 7413719

Devinsky O, Cross JH, Laux L, et al. Trial of cannabidiol for drug-resistant seizures in the Dravet syndrome. N Engl J Med 2017;376(21):2011-20. PMID 28538134

Maa E, Figi P. The case for medical marijuana in epilepsy. Epilepsia 2014;55(6):783-6. PMID 24854149

We believe that the principles expressed or implied in the podcast remain valid, but certain details may be superseded by evolving knowledge since the episode’s original release date.