Cannabis will for the first time be utilized to treat the symptoms of dementia in a new major clinical trial in the United Kingdom.
In the trial, led by the researchers at the King’s College London, a drug known as Sativex will be tested on 60 volunteers, aged 55 to 90 years and having the symptoms of Alzheimer’s and dementia.
The researchers believe that Sativex, a mouth spray which tastes like peppermint and contains CBD (cannabidiol) and THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) extracts, might help reduce symptoms like paranoia, agitation and aggression.
About 50 percent of the dementia patients across the UK experience such symptoms. Apart from this, the other common symptoms include lapse of memory, mood swings and confusion.
Presently, Savitex is licensed for just the treatment of multiple sclerosis across the UK.
The trail is being funded with a sum of £300,000 from the Alzheimer’s Research UK. The volunteers for the trail will be asked to use the prescribed medication for a period of 4 weeks. Later, the cannabis results will be compared with the patients who were prescribed placebo.
If the final result of the project shows a positive sign, the researchers may conduct a bigger and more detailed research later.
