Medicinal cannabis for primary dysmenorrhea (period pain)
Do you experience regular period pain? If you get period pain, are aged over 20 and don’t have a diagnosis for what’s causing it (e.g endometriosis) then you may be eligible to participate in a study on medicinal cannabis for period pain.
NICM Health Research Institute’s Associate Professor Mike Armour is leading an observational study on the effectiveness and safety of medicinal cannabis to treat period pain and related symptoms such as bloating, back pain and fatigue. The treatment period is six months and you would need to be able to attend a local pathology centre for three blood tests to make sure your liver and kidney function is normal. A medical doctor at Natura Clinic will assess your suitability for medicinal cannabis and if you are eligible will prescribe one or more medicinal cannabis products for you. This may include CBD only products, or products with CBD and THC. The doctor will discuss your treatment goals and preferences with you before making recommendations. All consultations during the study are free of charge, however you will need to purchase the medicinal cannabis products, however these will be at a much reduced price. You will remain under the care of this doctor during the study and they can advise on any dosage or product changes.
Who can join?
- People aged 20 years and over, having regular menstruation (i.e., one period every 24-35 days) who:
- Are currently living in Australia;
- Either have been told they have primary dysmenorrhea, or have regular period pain with no known underlying cause
- Have not used any form of cannabis (including CBD products) in the previous three-months;
- Are not pregnant, breastfeeding or planning to become pregnant in the next six-months;
- Agree to not drive or operate heavy machinery if you are prescribed THC containing products.
- Possess a smartphone with internet connectivity (to be able to complete the questionnaires)
What's involved?
- After an initial assessment and consent, you will:
- Have blood taken to assess your liver and kidney function.
- Complete a series of questionnaires on a mobile phone, tablet or computer for your period prior to starting the medicinal cannabis.
- Once you have been taking the medicinal cannabis products the doctor has prescribed you we will ask to you:
- Once a month log what products you have used and the average dosage you’ve used.
- Each time you have a period, you’ll need to complete some questionnaires about your pain level, if you needed to use other medication like ibuprofen, and if you’ve had any side effects from the treatment. At the end of your period we will also ask you to tell us about how you felt in the past month and how heavy your period was.
- At three months and again at the end of the study we will ask you to
- Have blood taken to monitor liver and kidney function.
- At the end of six months we will ask you to complete questionnaires similar to those before you started as well as asking you some questions about satisfaction with the treatment.
- In total we expect that it will take about 3-4 hours over six months to complete all the forms, not including the time for the three blood tests.
What are the benefits for participating?
Despite its high prevalence, primary dysmenorrhoea often remains largely unrecognised and untreated. In addition, available treatment options are not always effective. If you want to use medicinal cannabis for your period pain, participating in this study will provide discounted products and free consultation. In addition if medicinal cannabis looks like it might be effective then this study will provide the information needed to run a randomized controlled trial in future.
Interested in participating?
For more details about this study please read the following information before deciding on whether to participate.
In order to confirm your eligibility and register your interest, please complete the online form below.
If you have further questions, please contact the research team on canndyshelp@westernsydney.edu.au
Human Research Ethics Committee Approval: This clinical trial has been approved by Western Sydney University Human Ethics committee (H15819).
This study is supported by Cannim and Western Sydney University via a research partnership grant.
NICM Health Research Institute Chief Investigator: Associate Professor Mike Armour.
