Skip to main content

Main menu

  • HOME
  • LATEST ARTICLES
  • ALL ISSUES
  • AUTHORS & REVIEWERS
  • RESOURCES
    • About BJGP Open
    • BJGP Open Accessibility Statement
    • Editorial Board
    • Editorial Fellowships
    • Audio Abstracts
    • eLetters
    • Alerts
    • BJGP Life
    • Research into Publication Science
    • Advertising
    • Contact
  • SPECIAL ISSUES
    • Artificial Intelligence in Primary Care: call for articles
    • Social Care Integration with Primary Care: call for articles
    • Special issue: Telehealth
    • Special issue: Race and Racism in Primary Care
    • Special issue: COVID-19 and Primary Care
    • Past research calls
    • Top 10 Research Articles of the Year
  • BJGP CONFERENCE →
  • RCGP
    • British Journal of General Practice
    • BJGP for RCGP members
    • RCGP eLearning
    • InnovAIT Journal
    • Jobs and careers

User menu

  • Alerts

Search

  • Advanced search
Intended for Healthcare Professionals
BJGP Open
  • RCGP
    • British Journal of General Practice
    • BJGP for RCGP members
    • RCGP eLearning
    • InnovAIT Journal
    • Jobs and careers
  • Subscriptions
  • Alerts
  • Log in
  • Follow BJGP Open on Instagram
  • Visit bjgp open on Bluesky
  • Blog
Intended for Healthcare Professionals
BJGP Open

Advanced Search

  • HOME
  • LATEST ARTICLES
  • ALL ISSUES
  • AUTHORS & REVIEWERS
  • RESOURCES
    • About BJGP Open
    • BJGP Open Accessibility Statement
    • Editorial Board
    • Editorial Fellowships
    • Audio Abstracts
    • eLetters
    • Alerts
    • BJGP Life
    • Research into Publication Science
    • Advertising
    • Contact
  • SPECIAL ISSUES
    • Artificial Intelligence in Primary Care: call for articles
    • Social Care Integration with Primary Care: call for articles
    • Special issue: Telehealth
    • Special issue: Race and Racism in Primary Care
    • Special issue: COVID-19 and Primary Care
    • Past research calls
    • Top 10 Research Articles of the Year
  • BJGP CONFERENCE →
Research

Cannabidiol prescription in clinical practice: an audit on the first 400 patients in New Zealand

Graham Gulbransen, William Xu and Bruce Arroll
BJGP Open 2020; 4 (1): bjgpopen20X101010. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3399/bjgpopen20X101010
Graham Gulbransen
1 Private Practitioner, Cannabis Care NZ, West Care Specialist Centre, Auckland, New Zealand
MBChB, FAChAM, FRNZCGP
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
  • For correspondence: doctor@cannabiscare.nz
William Xu
2 Medical Student, Department of General Practice and Primary Health Care, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
  • ORCID record for William Xu
Bruce Arroll
3 Professor and Head of Department, Department of General Practice and Primary Health Care, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
MBChB, PhD, FRNZCGP
  • Find this author on Google Scholar
  • Find this author on PubMed
  • Search for this author on this site
  • Article
  • Figures & Data
  • Info
  • eLetters
  • PDF
Loading

Article Figures & Data

Tables

    • View popup
    Table 1. Baseline characteristics
    CharacteristicFrequency, nProportion, %
    Mean age, years (±SD)51.48 (±19.1)–
    SexMale18346.1
    Female21453.9
    Indication for CBD prescriptionNon-cancer pain symptoms18145.6
    Mental health symptoms6416.1
    Neurological symptoms6015.1
    Cancer symptoms9223.2
    • View popup
    Table 2. Baseline and follow-up EQ-5D-5L
    Indication for CBD prescriptionDomain of
    EQ-5D-5L
    Baseline EQ-5D-5L scores, median (IQR)Follow-up EQ-5D-5L scores, median (IQR) P v alue
    Non-cancer pain symptoms (n = 53)Mobility2.0 (1.0 to 3.0)2.0 (1.0 to 3.0)0.022
    Self-care1.0 (1.0 to 2.0)1.0 (1.0 to 2.0)0.046
    Usual activities3.0 (2.0 to 4.0)2.0 (1.0 to 3.0)0.007
    Pain/discomfort3.5 (3.0 to 4.0)3.0 (2.0 to 3.0)<0.001
    Anxiety/depression2.0 (1.0 to 3.0)2.0 (1.0 to 2.0)0.017
    Mental health symptoms (n = 21)Mobility1.0 (1.0 to 1.0)1.0 (1.0 to 1.0)0.577
    Self-care1.0 (1.0 to 1.75)1.0 (1.0 to 1.0)0.096
    Usual activities3.0 (2.0 to 3.0)1.0 (1.0 to 2.0)0.002
    Pain/discomfort2.0 (1.0 to 3.0)1.0 (1.0 to 2.0)0.039
    Anxiety/depression4.0 (3.0 to 4.0)2.0 (1.5 to 3.0)0.002
    Neurological symptoms (n = 11)Mobility1.0 (1.0 to 3.0)1.5 (1.0 to 2.0)0.317
    Self-care1.0 (1.0 to 3.0)1.5 (1.0 to 2.0)0.317
    Usual activities3.0 (1.75 to 4.0)2.5 (1.75 to 3.25)0.194
    Pain/discomfort3.0 (1.5 to 3.5)3.0 (1.5 to 3.0)0.18
    Anxiety/depression3.0 (2.0 to 3.0)1.5 (1.0 to 3.0)0.194
    Cancer symptoms (n = 24)Mobility1.0 (1.0 to 2.0)1.0 (1.0 to 2.0)0.56
    Self-care1.0 (1.0 to 2.0)1.0 (1.0 to 1.0)1
    Usual activities2.0 (1.0 to 2.75)2.0 (1.0 to 3.0)1
    Pain/discomfort3.0 (2.0 to 3.0)2.0 (1.0 to 2.5)0.047
    Anxiety/depression2.0 (1.0 to 3.0)1.0 (1.0 to 2.0)0.11
    • Score of 1 = no problems, 2 = slight problems, 3= moderate problems, 4 = severe problems, 5 = extreme problems. P values are calculated from Wilcoxon rank sum tests. ‘Before’ scores taken at first consultation. ‘After’ scores taken after at least 3 weeks of cannabidiol intake.

    • CBD = cannabidiol. IQR = interquartile range.

    • View popup
    Table 3. Side effect profile of the followed-up patients (n = 253)
    Side effectFrequency, n (%)
    Positive effects
     Improved sleep31 (12.3)
     Improved appetite7 (2.8)
    Adverse effects
     Sedation5 (2.0)
     Vivid dreams5 (2.0)
     Emotional disturbances eg, irritable, depressed, anxious5 (2.0)
     Disorientation3 (1.2)
     Sleeplessness1 (0.4)
     Nausea1 (0.4)
     Constipation1 (0.4)
     Diarrhoea1 (0.4)
     Headaches1 (0.4)
     Oral mucosa irritation1 (0.4)
     Hallucinations1 (0.4)
Back to top
Previous ArticleNext Article

In this issue

BJGP Open
Vol. 4, Issue 1
April 2020
  • Table of Contents
  • Index by author
Download PDF
Email Article

Thank you for recommending BJGP Open.

NOTE: We only request your email address so that the person to whom you are recommending the page knows that you wanted them to see it, and that it is not junk mail. We do not capture any email address.

Enter multiple addresses on separate lines or separate them with commas.
Cannabidiol prescription in clinical practice: an audit on the first 400 patients in New Zealand
(Your Name) has forwarded a page to you from BJGP Open
(Your Name) thought you would like to see this page from BJGP Open.
CAPTCHA
This question is for testing whether or not you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.
Citation Tools
Cannabidiol prescription in clinical practice: an audit on the first 400 patients in New Zealand
Graham Gulbransen, William Xu, Bruce Arroll
BJGP Open 2020; 4 (1): bjgpopen20X101010. DOI: 10.3399/bjgpopen20X101010

Citation Manager Formats

  • BibTeX
  • Bookends
  • EasyBib
  • EndNote (tagged)
  • EndNote 8 (xml)
  • Medlars
  • Mendeley
  • Papers
  • RefWorks Tagged
  • Ref Manager
  • RIS
  • Zotero
Share
Cannabidiol prescription in clinical practice: an audit on the first 400 patients in New Zealand
Graham Gulbransen, William Xu, Bruce Arroll
BJGP Open 2020; 4 (1): bjgpopen20X101010. DOI: 10.3399/bjgpopen20X101010
del.icio.us logo Facebook logo Mendeley logo
  • Tweet Widget
  • Facebook Like
  • Google Plus One
  • Mendeley logo Mendeley

Jump to section

  • Top
  • Article
    • Abstract
    • How this fits in
    • Introduction
    • Method
    • Results
    • Discussion
    • Notes
    • References
  • Figures & Data
  • Info
  • eLetters
  • PDF

Keywords

  • community care
  • therapy in mental health
  • prescribing
  • cannabidiol
  • cannabis
  • anti-anxiety agents
  • Mental health
  • depression
  • chronic pain
  • analgesics
  • patient reported outcome measures

More in this TOC Section

  • Recognition and management of acute functional decline in older people living in care homes: a qualitative interview study with UK care home staff
  • Complex mental health difficulties in primary care: scoping review with thematic synthesis
  • Discussing poverty within primary care consultations: implications for mental health support
Show more Research

Related Articles

Cited By...

Intended for Healthcare Professionals

 
 

British Journal of General Practice

NAVIGATE

  • Home
  • Latest articles
  • Authors & reviewers
  • Accessibility statement

RCGP

  • British Journal of General Practice
  • BJGP for RCGP members
  • RCGP eLearning
  • InnovAiT Journal
  • Jobs and careers

MY ACCOUNT

  • RCGP members' login
  • Terms and conditions

NEWS AND UPDATES

  • About BJGP Open
  • Alerts
  • RSS feeds
  • Facebook
  • Twitter

AUTHORS & REVIEWERS

  • Submit an article
  • Writing for BJGP Open: research
  • Writing for BJGP Open: practice & policy
  • BJGP Open editorial process & policies
  • BJGP Open ethical guidelines
  • Peer review for BJGP Open

CUSTOMER SERVICES

  • Advertising
  • Open access licence

CONTRIBUTE

  • BJGP Life
  • eLetters
  • Feedback

CONTACT US

BJGP Open Journal Office
RCGP
30 Euston Square
London NW1 2FB
Tel: +44 (0)20 3188 7400
Email: bjgpopen@rcgp.org.uk

BJGP Open is an editorially-independent publication of the Royal College of General Practitioners

© 2025 BJGP Open

Online ISSN: 2398-3795