CBD-enriched medical cannabis for intractable pediatric epilepsy The current Israeli experience

AbstractPurposeTo describe the experience of five Israeli pediatric epilepsy clinics treating children and adolescents diagnosed as having intractable epilepsy with a regimen of medical cannabis oil.MethodsA retrospective study describing the effect of cannabidiol (CBD)-enriched medical cannabis on children with epilepsy. The cohort included 74 patients (age range 1–18 years) with intractable epilepsy resistant to >7 antiepileptic drugs. Forty-nine (66%) also failed a ketogenic diet, vagal nerve stimulator implantation, or both. They all started medical cannabis oil treatment between 2–11/2014 and were treated for at least 3 months (average 6 months). The selected formula contained CBD and tetrahydrocannabinol at a ratio of 20:1 dissolved in olive oil. The CBD dose ranged from 1 to 20mg/kg/d. Seizure frequency was assessed by parental report during clinical visits.ResultsCBD treatment yielded a significant positive effect on seizure load. Most of the children (66/74, 89%) reported reduction in seizure frequency: 13 (18%) reported 75–100% reduction, 25 (34%) reported 50–75% reduction, 9 (12%) reported 25–50% reduction, and 19 (26%) reported