Evidence map›Paper›PMID 37043511›Full record

ArticlePloS one2023

Nabilone treatment for severe behavioral problems in adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities: Protocol for a phase I open-label clinical trial.

Hsiang-Yuan Lin, Elia Abi-Jaoude, Pushpal Desarkar, Wei Wang, Stephanie H Ameis, Meng-Chuan Lai, Yona Lunsky, Tarek K Rajji

Open access · goldAbstract readClinical Trial Protocol
In one paragraph

Article in PloS one, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
0.2field-weighted citation impact, top 42% 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

2 citing papers in PubMed, 1 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Beyond the Outburst: Charting a New Frontier for Understanding and Treating Irritability in Autistic Adults.Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism Research · 2026
    Review
  2. Review
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

8 authors at 2 institutions in 3 countries.

Hsiang-Yuan LinAzrieli Adult Neurodevelopmental Centre, Campbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.ORCID 0000-0001-9519-209X
Elia Abi-JaoudeDepartment of Psychiatry, Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Pushpal DesarkarAzrieli Adult Neurodevelopmental Centre, Campbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Wei WangDepartment of Psychiatry, Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Stephanie H AmeisAzrieli Adult Neurodevelopmental Centre, Campbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Meng-Chuan LaiAzrieli Adult Neurodevelopmental Centre, Campbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.ORCID 0000-0002-9593-5508
Yona LunskyAzrieli Adult Neurodevelopmental Centre, Campbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.ORCID 0000-0002-1866-9728
Tarek K RajjiAdult Neurodevelopment and Geriatric Psychiatry Division, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Canada.ORCID 0000-0002-8324-2560
Centre for Addiction and Mental Health · CAUniversity of Toronto · CA

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Severe behavioral problems (SBPs) are common contributors to morbidity and reduced quality of life for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) and their families. Current medications for SBPs show equivocal effectiveness and are associated with a high risk of side effects. New and safe treatments are urgently needed. While preliminary studies suggest that medical cannabinoids, particularly the synthetic cannabinoid nabilone, are plausible treatment options for SBPs in adults with IDD, data on the tolerability, safety and efficacy of nabilone in this population has never been investigated. Thus, we propose this first-ever Phase I pre-pilot open-label clinical trial to obtain preliminary data on the adherence, tolerability and safety profiles of nabilone in adults with IDD, and explore changes in SBPs pre- to post-treatment. We hypothesize that nabilone has favorable tolerability and safety profile for adults with IDD. The preliminary results will inform the next-stage pilot randomized controlled trials, followed by fully powered clinical trials eventually. This research helps fill the evidence gap in the use of cannabinoids in individuals with IDD to meet the needs of patients, families, and service providers.

Indexed as

CannabinoidsIntellectual DisabilityProblem BehaviorAdultChildClinical Trials, Phase I as TopicDevelopmental DisabilitiesDronabinolHumansQuality of LifeCannabinoidsDronabinolnabilone

Identifiers

PMID37043511
PMCPMC10096227
OpenAlexW4365135004

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.