Effects of Cannabis Use on Physical Pain and the Moderating Role of Depressive Symptoms

Objective: While cannabis has several empirically supported medical benefits, the literature is mixed regarding the effectiveness of cannabis in reducing symptoms of physical pain. Depressive symptoms are a potentially important moderator of the relationship between cannabis and pain that could help explain the mixed literature. The current study aimed to assess whether the magnitude of pain relief from cannabis use was higher in individuals with elevated depressive symptoms. Method: Seventy-six participants (64.5% female; 80.3% White; Mage = 22.19 years [SD = 5.69]) who self-reported using cannabis at least once per week were recruited in northeastern Ohio. Multi-level modeling was utilized to examine the effect of daily cannabis use and depressive symptoms on pain ratings over one week. Additional analyses examined a sub-sample of participants with more than minor pain (N = 36). Results: It was found that using cannabis on any given day was associated with lower average pain ratings (B = -0.60, 95%CI[-1.10 - -0.09]) within the sub-sample. Within the entire sample, depressive symptoms were associated with higher average pain ratings (B = 0.21, 95%CI [0.09-0.32]). Depressive symptoms did not moderate the relationship between cannabis use and pain. Conclusions: We found that cannabis use was associated with lower reported pain in the sub-sample. Further research is needed to explore the impact of the type of pain on the efficacy of cannabis. Experimental studies exploring the ideal therapeutic dose for cannabis and controlling for route of administration are needed to further inform this research concerning the subjective effects of cannabis.