ArticleAddiction biology2019
Guanfacine decreases symptoms of cannabis withdrawal in daily cannabis smokers.
Article in Addiction biology, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 15 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
15 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 28 citations in OpenAlex.
- Evidence-based consensus guidelines for the pharmacological management of substance dependence: Recommendations from the British Association for Psychopharmacology.Journal of psychopharmacology (Oxford, England) · 2026Guideline
- Alcohol and Substance Use After Bariatric Surgery: Nutritional Risks and Clinical Implications in Long-Term Postoperative Care.Nutrients · 2026Review
- Delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol and Cannabidiol for Pain: Preclinical and Clinical Models.Current topics in behavioral neurosciences · 2026Review
- Pharmacotherapy for Cannabis Use Disorder: Preclinical and Clinical Models.Current topics in behavioral neurosciences · 2026Review
- Cannabis and psychopathology: 2024 Snapshot of a meandering journey.Indian journal of psychiatry · 2025Review
- Review
- Guanfacine Treatment in a Patient with Intravenous Buprenorphine/Naloxone Misuse.Case reports in psychiatry · 2024Article
- Consideration of sex as a biological variable in the translation of pharmacotherapy for stress-associated drug seeking.Neurobiology of stress · 2021Review
- Responses to social evaluative stress in regular cannabis smokers.Journal of psychopharmacology (Oxford, England) · 2021Article
- Cannabis use, abuse, and withdrawal: Cannabinergic mechanisms, clinical, and preclinical findings.Journal of neurochemistry · 2021Review
- Human Laboratory Models of Cannabis Use: Applications for Clinical and Translational Psychiatry Research.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2021Article
- Guanfacine's mechanism of action in treating prefrontal cortical disorders: Successful translation across species.Neurobiology of learning and memory · 2020Review
- αNeuropsychopharmacology : official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology · 2020Article
- Thinking Beyond Legalization: The Case for Expanding Evidence-Based Options for Cannabis Use Disorder Treatment in Canada.Canadian journal of psychiatry. Revue canadienne de psychiatrie · 2019Article
- Drug-induced stress responses and addiction risk and relapse.Neurobiology of stress · 2019Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
8 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
The α2a-adrenergic agonist, lofexidine, reduced cannabis withdrawal-related sleep disruption in the laboratory, but side effects (e.g. fatigue, hypotension) limit its utility as a treatment for cannabis use disorder. This study tested the potential efficacy and tolerability of a daily bedtime administration of the FDA-approved α2a-adrenergic agonist, guanfacine, in a human laboratory model of cannabis use disorder. Daily, nontreatment-seeking cannabis smokers (13M, 2F) completed a within-subject study comprising two 9-day inpatient study phases. Each phase tested the effects of daily placebo or immediate-release guanfacine (2 mg) on cannabis intoxication (5.6 percent THC; 2 days), withdrawal (4 days of abstinence) and subsequent 'relapse' (3 days of cannabis self-administration). Ratings of mood, sleep, cardiovascular effects, food intake, psychomotor performance and cannabis self-administration were assessed. An outpatient phase preceded each inpatient phase for medication clearance or dose induction. Under placebo medication conditions, cannabis abstinence produced significant withdrawal, including irritability, sleep disruption and anorexia. Guanfacine reduced ratings of irritability and improved objective measures of sleep during cannabis withdrawal relative to placebo but did not reduce cannabis self-administration. Guanfacine was well tolerated with little evidence of fatigue and only small decreases in blood pressure: no dose was held due to hypotension. Thus, a single daily administration of guanfacine at bedtime improved sleep and mood during cannabis withdrawal relative to placebo. This positive signal supports further studies varying the guanfacine dose, formulation or frequency of administration, or combining it with other medications to increase the likelihood of having an impact on cannabis use.
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.