Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41359313›Full record

ArticleJAMA internal medicine2026

Medical Cannabis and Opioid Receipt Among Adults With Chronic Pain.

Deepika E Slawek, Chenshu Zhang, Stephen Dahmer, Nancy Sohler, Yuval Zolotov, Joanna L Starrels, Yuting Deng, Giovanna Calderon DiFrancesca, Frances R Levin, Jonathan Ross and 3 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in JAMA internal medicine, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
4citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
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

4 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Article
  3. Article
  4. Article
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

13 authors.

Deepika E SlawekDivision of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, Montefiore Medical Center and Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York.
Chenshu ZhangDivision of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, Montefiore Medical Center and Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York.
Stephen DahmerAndrew Weil Center for Integrative Medicine, University of Arizona, Tucson.
Nancy SohlerDepartment of Community Health and Social Medicine, City University of New York, New York.
Yuval ZolotovDepartment of Health Systems Management, Faculty of Health Sciences, Ariel University, Ariel, Israel.
Joanna L StarrelsDivision of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, Montefiore Medical Center and Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York.
Yuting DengDivision of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, Montefiore Medical Center and Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York.
Giovanna Calderon DiFrancescaDivision of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, Montefiore Medical Center and Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York.
Frances R LevinDivision on Substance Use Disorders, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York.
Jonathan RossDivision of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, Montefiore Medical Center and Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York.
Haruka MinamiDepartment of Psychology, Fordham University, Bronx, New York.
Chinazo O CunninghamDivision of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, Montefiore Medical Center and Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York.
Julia H ArnstenDivision of General Internal Medicine, Department of Medicine, Montefiore Medical Center and Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York.

Funding

The impact of medical cannabis on pain and inflammation in people living with HIVK23DA053997 · NIDA · ALBERT EINSTEIN COLLEGE OF MEDICINE · PI SLAWEK, DEEPIKA · 2021 to 2024
$777k
NIDA NIH HHS K23 DA053997
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Importance: Medical cannabis is increasingly considered a substitute for prescription opioid medications for chronic pain, driven by the urgent need for opioid alternatives to combat the ongoing epidemic. Objective: To determine the association between participation in the New York State (NYS) medical cannabis program and prescription opioid receipt among adults with chronic pain. Design, Setting, and Participants: This cohort study used data from the NYS Prescription Monitoring Program (PMP) from September 2018 through July 2023. Adults prescribed opioids for chronic pain who were newly certified for medical cannabis use in NYS were recruited from a large academic medical center and nearby medical cannabis dispensaries in the Bronx, New York. Monthly dispensation of medical cannabis to study participants was monitored for 18 months. Data analyses were performed from February 3, 2025, to July 15, 2025. Exposure: Portion of days covered each month by pharmacist report of dispensed medical cannabis. Main Outcomes and Measures: Prescription opioid receipt, defined as NYS PMP-reported prescription monthly opioid dispensation (mean daily dose in morphine milliequivalents [MME]), was assessed with marginal structural models adjusted for time-invariant and time-varying confounders, including self-reported unregulated cannabis use. Nonprescribed opioid use was also assessed during the study period. Results: Among 204 participants, the mean (SD) age at baseline was 56.8 (12.8) years, and 113 (55.4%) were female. At baseline, participants' mean (SD) pain severity score was 6.6 (1.8) out of 10, and mean (SD) pain interference score was 6.8 (1.9) out of 10. Baseline mean (SD) daily MME was 73.3 (133.0). During the 18-month follow-up period, participants' mean (SD) daily MME decreased to 57.4 (127.8). This reduction in mean daily MME was associated with the monthly portion of days covered with medical cannabis; compared with no medical cannabis dispensed, participants dispensed a 30-day supply of medical cannabis were exposed to 3.53 fewer MME per day (β = -3.53; 95% CI, -6.68 to -0.04; P = .03). Conclusions and Relevance: In this cohort study, participation in NYS's medical cannabis program was associated with reduced prescription opioid receipt during 18 months of prospective follow-up, accounting for unregulated cannabis use.

Indexed as

Analgesics, OpioidChronic PainMedical MarijuanaAdultAgedCohort StudiesFemaleHumansMaleMiddle AgedNew YorkAnalgesics, OpioidMedical Marijuana

Identifiers

PMID41359313
PMCPMC12687209

What OpenQuestion holds

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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.