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The cannabis component, Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol, which binds to endogenous cannabinoid receptors, increases the risk for psychosis (Arch Gen Psychiatry 2010; 67:440). In contrast, cannabidiol, another component of cannabis but without psychotropic effects, weakly binds to endogenous cannabinoid receptors and has antipsychotic effects. To clinically test these antipsychotic properties, researchers conducted a phase II, double-blind, 4-week trial, in which 42 patients acutely ill with psychosis (mean age, 30; 82% men were randomized to cannabidiol or amisulpride, a dopamine D2/D3 receptor antagonist.
At baseline, all but five participants had paranoid schizophrenia, and these five were later given this diagnosis. The medication groups had simi…