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Cannabinoids effectively relieve certain multiple sclerosis (MS) symptoms, such as muscle stiffness and spasms, and many MS patients use cannabis for that purpose (CNS Drugs 2011; 25:187). However, long-term or heavy cannabis use is associated with cognitive impairment in the general population, and cognitive impairment is also a feature of MS.
Researchers used the Minimal Assessment of Cognitive Function in MS test battery to compare 25 MS patients who were long-term cannabis users (mean duration, 27 years; abstinent for ≥12 hours before testing) with 25 well-matched MS patients who had not used cannabis regularly (mean age in both groups, 44). Most of the cannabis group reported daily use.
Cannabis users were significantly more impaired tha…