Evidence map›Paper›PMID 31941020›Full record

ReviewGeriatrics (Basel, Switzerland)2020

Cannabinoids in the Older Person: A Literature Review.

William Beedham, Magda Sbai, Isabel Allison, Roisin Coary, David Shipway

Open access · goldAbstract readReview
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Review in Geriatrics (Basel, Switzerland), 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 10 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
10citing papers in PubMed, 3 pooled it
3.3field-weighted citation impact, top 8% of its field
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

10 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 32 citations in OpenAlex.

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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors at 4 institutions in 2 countries.

William BeedhamMedical Student, University of Birmingham Medical School, Birmingham B15 2SG, UK.
Magda SbaiConsultant Physician and Perioperative Geriatrician, Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust, London SE1 9RT, UK.ORCID 0000-0001-5978-4573
Isabel AllisonMedical Student, University of Birmingham Medical School, Birmingham B15 2SG, UK.
Roisin CoarySpecialist Registrar in Geriatric and General Medicine, St James's Hospital, P.O. Box 580 Dublin, Ireland.
David ShipwayConsultant Physician and Perioperative Geriatrician, North Bristol NHS Trust, BS10 5NB& Honorary Senior Clinical Lecturer, University of Bristol, Bristol BS8 2PL, UK.ORCID 0000-0001-9771-5878
University of Birmingham · GBGuy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust · GBNorth Bristol NHS Trust · GBSt. James's Hospital · IE

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

introductionMedical cannabinoids have received significant mainstream media attention in recent times due to an evolving political and clinical landscape. Whilst the efficacy of cannabinoids in the treatment of some childhood epilepsy syndromes is increasingly recognized, medical cannabinoids may also have potential clinical roles in the treatment of older adults. Prescribing restrictions for medical cannabinoids in certain jurisdictions (including the UK) has recently been relaxed. However, few geriatricians have the detailed knowledge or awareness of the potential risks or rewards of utilizing cannabinoids in the older person; even fewer geriatricians have direct experience of using these drugs in their own clinical practice. Older persons are more likely to suffer from medical illness representing potential indications for medical cannabinoids (e.g., pain); equally they may be more vulnerable to any adverse effects.

aimThis narrative literature review aims to provide a brief introduction for the geriatrician to the potential indications, evidence-base, contra-indications and side effects of medical cannabinoids in older people.

methodsA search was conducted of CENTRAL, Medline, Embase, CINAHL and psycINFO, Cochrane and Web of Science databases. Reference lists were hand searched. Abstracts and titles were screened, followed by a full text reading of relevant articles.

results35 studies were identified as relevant for this narrative review.

conclusionsCannabinoids demonstrate some efficacy in the treatment of pain and chemotherapy-related nausea; limited data suggest potential benefits in the treatment of spasticity and anxiety. Risks of cannabinoids in older patients appear to be moderate, and their frequency comparable to other analgesic drug classes. However, the quality of research is weak, and few older patients have been enrolled in cannabinoid studies. Dedicated research is needed to determine the efficiency and safety of cannabinoids in older patients.

Indexed as

cannabinoidsCBDeffectivenesselderlyliterature reviewsafetyTHC

Identifiers

PMID31941020
PMCPMC7151062
OpenAlexW3000382467

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.