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MEDICAL USE OF CANNABIS IN THE NETHERLANDS

Robert W. Gorter, MD, PhD(1,2,3,4), Mario Butorac, PhD(1), Maria Linder, PhD(5),
Willem van der Sluis, PhD(6), Marcel de Wit(7)



Abstract

Objectives:The purpose of this survey was to investigate for which indications Cannabis sativa was prescribed by which kind of licensed physicians and delivered through regular pharmacies in the Netherlands, and the possible efficacy and side-effects, documented by both the prescribing physicians and the patients.


Design: National survey consisting of two questionnaires: one for patients and one for prescribing physicians. All prescribed Cannabis sativa deliveries were accompanied by the questionnaires. Questionnaires were returned by patients and physicians separately, by regular prepaid mail, between October 1997 and February 1999.

Subjects: Patients receiving Cannabis sativa on prescription for medical indications. Results: In the Netherlands, patients receiving Cannabis sativa on prescription were 45% male and 55% female; median age was 58 yrs; median weight 70. 0kg. Mean duration of Cannabis intake was 5.6 months. Indications treated were neurological disorders (38.8%), pain (26.7%). musculoskeletal/connective tissue disorders (20.7%), and symptoms associated with cancer (13.8%). Inhaled Cannabis was perceived as being more effective for most indications than oral administration (p< 0.01).

Conclusions: In the Netherlands, the medical use of Cannabis sativa is widely accepted and prescribed by physicians of various specialties and used by more middle-aged patients of both genders, mainly for symptoms like spasticity, anorexia/cachexia, fatigue, and (chronic) pain.

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