 | NORML News: DUTCH INITIATIVE STIRS INTEREST IN EUROPE |
 The decision by the Dutch government to legalize cannabis prescriptions has aroused the interest of countries in Europe and beyond.
NORML News Summer 2003-4
The Dutch Health Ministry says it has already fielded calls for progress reports from officials in Germany, Britain, Belgium and Luxembourg. Britain began testing cannabis for medical purposes earlier this year with the possibility of the government making it legal for doctors to prescribe starting in 2004.
Germany already legally provides patients with oral pills and liquids, such as the pharmaceutically manufactured products Marinol and Nabilone, which contain tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).
The Belgian government has said it has no objection in following the Dutch move to make cannabis available from pharmacies.
Belgian Minister for Health Rudy Demotte confirmed they could be the next European country to legalise the sale of cannabis in pharmacies. A Health Ministry statement said that this is an area where public health must prevail and research has shown that cannabis is of medicinal use.
British pharmaceutical company GW Pharmaceuticals has already applied to the EU for its cannabis-based spray to receive accreditation, at which time the product would be sold in all member states.
A synthetic version of THC could be the first drug that protects the brain from devastating damage common after a serious brain injury. Pharmos Corp, an Israeli biopharmaceutical company, is conducting human tests of its compound, Dexanabinol, and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted fast-track status for the drug when testing is completed. That's because there is currently no medication specifically approved to treat damage to the brain from car crashes, sports injuries, falls or violence. Dexanabinol is the first drug tested that appears to reduce inflammation, prevent a lethal influx of chemicals that kill brain cells near the injured area, and capture free radicals that also kill brain cells.
Cannabis use does not seem to adversely affect cell counts or viral loads in HIV-infected patients, says a new report. Dr. Donald I. Abrams, from the University of California at San Francisco, assessed the outcomes of 67 HIV-infected patients who were randomly assigned to use marijuana cigarettes, cannabinoid capsules, or sugar pills (placebo). Marijuana and cannabinoid use did not produce a drop in CD4+ or CD8+ cell counts. In fact, compared with placebo use, treatment with these agents was associated with a slight increase in cell counts. The results suggest that short-term cannabinoid use is not unsafe for patients with HIV infection.
Source: Anl of Int Med, August 9, 2003.
Cannabinoids have been found to be effective in an animal model of hyperactivity disorder. Researchers studied ADHD in rats which reacted very impulsively and found they had a reduced density of CB1 cannabinoid receptors in the prefrontal cortex of the brain. The administration of a synthetic cannabinoid that - like THC - binds to the CB1 receptor normalised the impulsive behaviour in this subgroup of rats, but had no effect on normal rats. Until now there has been no clinical research with cannabis or single cannabinoids in ADHD but several patients report positive effects.
Source: Adriani W, et al. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2003;27(7)
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