As medical director for Medical Cannabis of Southern California I often evaluate patients who complain of muscle and joint pain.   Two days ago I had a patient come into my office with the diagnosis of polymyalgia rheumatica who discovered that cannabis can help reduce muscle inflammation and pain.

Polymyalgia rheumatica (PMR) is a disease characterized by muscle and joint pain.   It is result of the bodies white blood cells attacking the joints and surrounding tissue and causing inflammation which leads to pain.  The pain mostly occurs in the shoulders and hips but can also affect the upper arms and thighs.   The onset of pain can occur suddenly or gradually and typically can wake patients up at night.  Commonly patients will wake up  in the morning with pain and stiffness in the joints.  The average age of onset is 70 but mostly occurs after the age of 50.   Women are two times more likely to suffer from this as men.

I recently evaluated a 56y/o man who complained of PMR and had difficulty sleeping at night because of the pain in his shoulders.  The Ibuprofen that his doctor prescribed was causing stomach ulcers and because of the increasing dose it started to affect his kidneys.   He had tried both Ambien and Lunestra for sleep but it made him “feel like a zombie” in the morning and it was affecting his work.  He was feeling hopeless and could not think about having to suffer like this for the rest of his life.

A week prior to coming to see me he was over a friends house who had used cannabis for arthritis. He worked up the courage to try and vaporized two doses that evening.   What he told me was that “it was a miracle drug”.   HE SLEPT GREAT AND WOKE UP FEELING REFRESHED AND HAD A 75% REDUCTION IN HIS NORMAL PAIN!!!

The reason why this worked so well for him is that the medically active ingredients in cannabis (cannabinoids) have both analgesic (pain relieving) and anti-inflammatory properties.  There are over 60 cannabinoids in the plant and together the produce a physiologic change which leads to a reduction in patients symptoms.   Secondly, because cannabinoids bind to areas in the brain it is a great medication for sleep.  Patients wake up feeling refreshed.

If you suffer from Polymyalgia Rheumatica and would like more information about cannabis please visit my website at www.MCSoCal.com or call 877-721-0047 and make an appointment to come into my Irvine or Long Beach office.