Cannabis Use in Arthritis: Impact on Health-Related Quality of Life

Medical cannabis use in Canadians with arthritis may have increased up to threefold since its use was legalized in 2018. However, evidence for its effectiveness in arthritis is sparse and inconsistent. Our objectives were to compare HRQL in people with arthritis between cannabis users and nonusers and to evaluate factors associated with being a cannabis user.

Data were drawn from a Canada-wide cross-sectional survey of health-seeking behaviors in people with arthritis experiencing sleep disturbance. Respondents (n = 283) were recruited through advertisements on Arthritis Research Canada and Arthritis Consumer Experts platforms. Respondents provided sociodemographic and arthritis characteristics, as well as cannabis use in the past year and reasons for use. They also completed the PHQ-2, GAD-2, Perceived Stress Scale-4, Insomnia Severity Index, 11-point numeric rating scales for pain and fatigue, and a question on Self-Rated Health. t tests and chi-square tests were used to compare groups. Multivariable regression characterized factors associated with use, adjusting for age and sex.

The 283 respondents had a mean (SD) age of 62 (13) years and were mostly female (84%); 27% used cannabis in the past 3 months, mostly for medical purposes only (81%). Between-group comparisons showed that proportionately more users reported high pain, high stress, and poorer self-rated health (p's < 0.05). However, the logistic regression results indicated that having poorer patient-reported outcomes was not associated with greater odds of being a cannabis user.

Although medical cannabis use was common, users and nonusers reported similar patient-reported outcomes. It is possible that users were not experiencing much benefit, but also possible that cannabis was boosting users' outcomes such that they appeared similar to nonusers. More research is needed to understand how using cannabis affects arthritis symptoms, and why outcomes in users and nonusers may appear similar.