Bundesgesundheitsblatt, Gesundheitsforschung, Gesundheitsschutz
-
Bundesgesundheitsblatt Gesundheitsforschung Gesundheitsschutz · Mar 2021
[Three years of cannabis as medicine-preliminary results of the survey accompanying the prescription of medical cannabis in Germany].
In Germany, physicians who prescribe medical cannabis flowers or cannabis-based medicines (narcotic prescription) at the expense of the statutory health insurance are obliged to take part in a noninterventional accompanying survey that runs until 31 March 2022. At the time of this interim evaluation, 11 May 2020, there were 10,010 complete datasets collected. The most frequently treated symptoms were pain (73%), followed by spasticity (10%), and anorexia/wasting (6%). ⋯ Patients treated with cannabis flowers are significantly younger and predominantly male. They are treated more often by general practitioners and internists, their diagnosis differs more often from the typical diagnoses (pain, spasticity, anorexia/wasting), and they have more prior experience with cannabis. The underreporting in the accompanying survey is mainly in this patient group.