Cannabinoids and an anti-inflammatory diet for the treatment of neuropathic pain after spinal cord injury (The CATNP Study): study protocol for a randomized controlled trial

• Published in: Spinal cord Vol. 59; no. 2; pp. 112 - 122
• Main Authors: Allison, David J., Agudelo, Alexandria Roa, Chan, Brian C. F., Ditor, David S., Loh, Eldon
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 01.02.2021; Nature Publishing Group
• Subjects: 13/21; 692/308/2779/109/1941; 692/617/375/1692; Anatomy; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biomedicine; Cannabinoids; Clinical trials; Diet; Evaluation; Human Physiology; Inflammation; Mood; Neuralgia; Neurochemistry; Neuropsychology; Neurosciences; Pain; Placebos; Rehabilitation; Side effects; Sleep; Spasticity; Spinal cord injuries
• ISSN: 1362-4393; 1476-5624
• DOI: 10.1038/s41393-020-0508-5

Study design Multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo controlled, clinical trial. Objective The objective of this paper is to evaluate the effectiveness of cannabinoids and an anti-inflammatory diet, alone and in combination, for the management of neuropathic pain (NP) after spinal cord injury (SCI). Setting Two Canadian SCI rehabilitation centers. Methods A sample of 144 individuals with SCI will receive either an anti-inflammatory diet, cannabinoids or a placebo for 6 weeks. Following this, a combined effect of these treatments will be evaluated for a further 6 weeks. The primary outcome measure will be the change in NP as assessed by the numeric rating scale (NRS). Secondary outcomes will include changes in inflammation, mood, sleep, spasticity, cost-effectiveness, and function. Conclusion This study will assess the efficacy of an anti-inflammatory diet and cannabinoids (individually and in combination) for the treatment of NP following SCI. Results may reveal a cost-effective, side-effect free intervention strategy which could be utilized for the long-term management of NP following SCI.