Cannabidiol improves severe form of childhood epilepsy in controlled clinical trial

The manufacturer of the CBD extract Epidiolex, GW Pharmaceuticals, reported of positive results of the second placebo-controlled Phase 3 clinical trial of this preparation for the treatment of seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome, a rare and severe form of childhood-onset epilepsy. The trial randomized 225 patients into three arms, where Epidiolex was added to the current treatment in a dose of 20mg/kg body weight per day (n=76) or in a dose of 10mg/kg/day (n=73). The other patients (n=76) received a placebo.

Epidiolex Cannabidiol

Patients taking Epidiolex in the higher dose achieved a median reduction in monthly drop seizures of 42 percent compared with a reduction of 17 percent in patients taking placebo, and patients taking Epidiolex in the lower dose achieved a median reduction in monthly drop seizures of 37 percent. “The positive outcome in this second trial of Epidiolex in patients with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome demonstrates the effectiveness of this product in this particularly difficult to treat, childhood-onset epilepsy,” stated Dr Orrin Devinsky of New York University Langone Medical Centers and principal investigator in the trial.

Ensayos clínicos

Comunicado deprensa de GW Pharmaceuticals del 26 de septiembre de 2016.

Fuente: Boletín IACM

(*) Photo:Wikimedia Commons