SynthesisDrug and alcohol dependence2022
Alleviation of opioid withdrawal by cannabis and delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol: A systematic review of observational and experimental human studies.
Synthesis in Drug and alcohol dependence, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT06544291 (Combination of THC and CBD as Novel Treatment for Co-Occurring Opioid Use Disorder and Chronic Pain), which is not on this map. Cited by 13 papers, 2 of them syntheses 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.
Combination of THC and CBD as Novel Treatment for Co-Occurring Opioid Use Disorder and Chronic Pain
Who cites it
13 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 15 citations in OpenAlex.
- Cannabinoid exposure across substance use disorders: Short-term symptom benefits without sustained therapeutic gains in a tier-weighted systematic review.European psychiatry : the journal of the Association of European Psychiatrists · 2026Pooled it
- Association between state cannabis laws and opioid outcomes: A systematic review.Drug and alcohol dependence · 2026Pooled it
- A preliminary investigation of the acute effects of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol on pain and opioid attentional bias among persons with opioid use disorder.Journal of psychiatric research · 2024Trial
- Delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol modulates pain sensitivity among persons receiving opioid agonist therapy for opioid use disorder: A within-subject, randomized, placebo-controlled laboratory study.Addiction biology · 2023Trial
- Ten-year outcomes of medical cannabis for chronic low back pain: opioid reduction, pain relief, and functional improvement in 1,000 patients.European spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society · 2026Article
- Self-reported cannabis use to manage opioid withdrawal symptoms and reductions in opioid use among people who use unregulated opioids: a cross-sectional analysis.Journal of cannabis research · 2026Article
- Effects of ΔThe Journal of pharmacology and experimental therapeutics · 2025Article
- Cannabis Use in Opioid Maintenance Therapy: Prevalence, Clinical Correlates and Reasons for Use.Brain sciences · 2025Article
- Kratom Alkaloids, Cannabinoids, and Chronic Pain: Basis of Potential Utility and Role in Therapy.Cannabis and cannabinoid research · 2025Article
- The Role of Medicinal Cannabis as an Emerging Therapy for Opioid Use Disorder.Pain and therapy · 2024Review
- Examining the Gateway Hypothesis and Mapping Substance Use Pathways on Social Media: Machine Learning Approach.JMIR formative research · 2024Article
- Chemistry and Pharmacology of Delta-8-Tetrahydrocannabinol.Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Review
- Targeting Opioid Receptors in Addiction and Drug Withdrawal: Where Are We Going?International journal of molecular sciences · 2023Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors at 3 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundWhile six U.S. states have already officially authorized cannabinoids to substitute opioids and treat opioid use disorder, the therapeutic benefits of cannabinoids remain unclear, especially when weighted against their adverse effects.
methodsWe conducted a systematic review of studies examining the association between opioid withdrawal and cannabis use or delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) administration. We searched multiple databases from inception to July 30, 2022, and assessed study quality.
resultsEleven studies were identified, with a total of 5330 participants, of whom 64 % were male. Nine observational studies examined the association between cannabis use and opioid withdrawal. Two randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trials (RCTs) investigated the withdrawal-alleviating effects of dronabinol, a synthetic form of THC. Four observational studies found an association between cannabis use and the alleviation of opioid withdrawal; one reported exacerbation of opioid withdrawal symptoms; and four reported no association. RCTs reported that THC alleviated opioid withdrawal, albeit with dose-dependent increases in measures of abuse liability, dysphoria, and tachycardia. There was high heterogeneity in measurements of opioid withdrawal and the type and dose of opioid at baseline.
conclusionsAlthough there is preliminary evidence that cannabis and its main psychoactive constituent, THC, may alleviate opioid withdrawal, these effects are likely to have a narrow therapeutic window. Further, the potential of cannabinoids to alleviate opioid withdrawal is determined by complex interactions between patient characteristics and pharmacological factors. Collectively, these findings have clinical, methodological, and mechanistic implications for treating opioid withdrawal during cannabinoid use, and for efforts to alleviate opioid withdrawal using non-opioid therapeutics.
Indexed as
Identifiers
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.