Schizophrenia Archives - TheJointBlog

Marijuana Use Doesn’t Lead to Deficits Associated With Schizophrenia, Finds Study

August 20, 2018 by Anthony Martinelli

Contrary to arguments oft-used by opponents of marijuana and marijuana law reform, “cannabis use does not significantly compound the gray matter deficits associated with schizophrenia”.

This is according to a study published by the journal Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging, and conducted by researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Tennessee.

The study’s abstract starts by stating that; “Substance use may confound the study of brain structure in schizophrenia. We used voxel-based morphometry (VBM) to examine whether differences in regional gray matter volumes exist between schizophrenia patients with and without clinically significant cannabis and/or alcohol use histories compared to 88 healthy control subjects.”

Study Finds CBD has Beneficial Effects in Patients with Schizophrenia

December 17, 2017 by Anthony Martinelli

**Cannabidiol (CBD) has beneficial effects in patients with schizophrenia, according to a new study published by the American Journal of Psychiatry.**

“Research in both animals and humans indicates that cannabidiol (CBD) has antipsychotic properties”, begins the study’s abstract. “The authors assessed the safety and effectiveness of CBD in patients with schizophrenia.”

In an exploratory double-blind parallel-group trial, patients with schizophrenia were “randomized in a 1:1 ratio to receive CBD (1000 mg/day; N=43) or placebo (N=45) alongside their existing antipsychotic medication.” Participants were “assessed before and after treatment using the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS), the Brief Assessment of Cognition in Schizophrenia (BACS), the Global Assessment of Functioning scale (GAF), and the improvement and severity scales of the Clinical Global Impressions Scale (CGI-I and CGI-S).”

Study: Cannabis Use Doesn’t Worsen Symptoms of Schizophrenia

August 18, 2014July 28, 2014 by Anthony Martinelli

A study published this month by the journal Schizophrenia Bulletin has found that cannabis use doesn’t negatively impact the symptoms of schizophrenia in those with the condition. Although this may come as no surprise to many, it helps to combat the prohibitionist argument that cannabis use is a detriment to those with schizophrenia.

“There are inconsistencies in findings as to whether cannabis use has a negative impact on clinical outcomes for people with established psychosis”, says professor Christine Barrowclough, PhD, who led the study. Due to these inconsistencies, researchers at the University of Manchester and University of Lancaster investigated “the relationship between cannabis use and clinical outcome, including whether change in cannabis use affects psychotic symptoms, affective symptoms, functioning and psychotic relapse in a sample of people in early psychosis with comorbid cannabis abuse or dependence.”

New Study: Cannabis May Treat Schizophrenia

August 22, 2014February 26, 2014 by Anthony Martinelli

A new study published in this month’s issue of the journal Frontiers in Pharmacology, and published online by the National Institute of Health, has found that cannabis may treat schizophrenia.

“Clinical and neurobiological findings suggest that the cannabinoids and the endocannabinoid system may be implicated in the pathophysiology and treatment of schizophrenia”, begins the study’s abstract. “We described that the spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) strain presents a schizophrenia behavioral phenotype that is specifically attenuated by antipsychotic drugs, and potentiated by proschizophrenia manipulations. Based on these findings, we have suggested this strain as an animal model of schizophrenia.

Endocannabinoid System May Play Role in Treating Symptoms of Schizophrenia, According to New Study

December 20, 2014January 2, 2014 by Anthony Martinelli

A new study published in the journal Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology & Biological Psychiatry has found that our body’s endocannabinoid system may provide a novel target for treatment of schizophrenia symptoms.

“Accumulating evidence suggests involvement of the endocannabinoid system in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia, which signifies a potential application for this system in the treatment of this disorder”, claims the study’s abstract. “Here we review human studies that investigated acute effects of cannabis or ∆9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) on brain functions that are implicated in schizophrenia.”

New Harvard Study: Cannabis Does Not Cause Schizophrenia

December 22, 2013December 8, 2013 by Anthony Martinelli

A new Harvard study published in the journal Schizophrenia Research has found evidence that cannabis use, regardless of how often or in what quantities, does not lead to an increase in schizophrenia, despite decades of propaganda to the contrary.

Cannabis Use Associated With Better Memory and Cognitive Function in Those With Schizophrenia

October 14, 2013August 15, 2013 by Anthony Martinelli

A new government funded study published in the journal Psychiatry Research has found that heavy cannabis use leads to better emotional memory and brain function in those with schizophrenia.

For the study – which was conducted at the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Montreal – researchers performed a magnetic resonance imaging study of emotional memory in patients with schizophrenia and cannabis abuse.