Cannabis Helped Endometriosis Pain, Especially When Inhaled
Among 252 people with endometriosis who tracked over 16,000 cannabis sessions, inhaled forms were more effective for pain while oral forms worked better for mood and gastrointestinal symptoms.
Quick Facts
What This Study Found
Across 16,193 tracked cannabis sessions, pain was the most common symptom treated (57.3%) with inhalation as the preferred method (67.4%). Inhaled forms showed higher efficacy for pain relief, while oral forms were superior for mood and gastrointestinal symptoms. GI symptoms, though less commonly targeted, showed the greatest self-reported improvement.
Key Numbers
252 participants; 16,193 cannabis sessions; pain most common target (57.3%); inhalation most common method (67.4%); median inhaled dose: 9 inhalations; median oral dose: 1 mg/mL; GI symptoms showed greatest improvement; THC:CBD ratio had statistically significant but clinically small differential effect.
How They Did This
Retrospective electronic record-based cohort study using data from the Strainprint mobile app, analyzing self-reported cannabis efficacy across symptom clusters in 252 users with endometriosis (April 2017-February 2020).
Why This Research Matters
Endometriosis affects roughly 10% of reproductive-age women, and current treatments often have significant side effects. This large dataset of real-world cannabis use provides the most detailed evidence to date on which forms and methods work best for specific symptoms.
The Bigger Picture
The finding that different delivery methods work better for different symptoms suggests that a one-size-fits-all approach to medical cannabis for endometriosis may be less effective than tailored regimens matching method to symptom.
What This Study Doesn't Tell Us
Self-reported data from an app without clinical verification; no placebo control; self-selection bias among app users; retrospective design; cannot rule out placebo effects.
Questions This Raises
- ?Would controlled clinical trials confirm the delivery-method-dependent efficacy patterns?
- ?How does cannabis compare to standard endometriosis treatments in head-to-head trials?
Trust & Context
- Key Stat:
- Over 16,000 tracked sessions showed inhaled cannabis was more effective for pain than oral forms
- Evidence Grade:
- Large retrospective dataset with detailed session-level tracking, limited by self-report and lack of controls.
- Study Age:
- Data from April 2017 to February 2020.
- Original Title:
- Effects of cannabis ingestion on endometriosis-associated pelvic pain and related symptoms.
- Published In:
- PloS one, 16(10), e0258940 (2021)
- Authors:
- Sinclair, Justin(14), Collett, Laura, Abbott, Jason(6), Pate, David W, Sarris, Jerome, Armour, Mike
- Database ID:
- RTHC-03529
Evidence Hierarchy
Looks back at existing records to find patterns.
What do these levels mean? →Frequently Asked Questions
Does cannabis help endometriosis pain?
In this study of over 16,000 tracked sessions, cannabis users with endometriosis reported significant pain relief, particularly with inhaled forms. However, the data is self-reported and lacks a placebo comparison.
Which form of cannabis worked best?
It depended on the symptom. Inhaled cannabis was more effective for pain, while oral forms worked better for mood and gastrointestinal symptoms. The THC:CBD ratio had a statistically significant but clinically small effect.
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Cite This Study
https://rethinkthc.com/research/RTHC-03529APA
Sinclair, Justin; Collett, Laura; Abbott, Jason; Pate, David W; Sarris, Jerome; Armour, Mike. (2021). Effects of cannabis ingestion on endometriosis-associated pelvic pain and related symptoms.. PloS one, 16(10), e0258940. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0258940
MLA
Sinclair, Justin, et al. "Effects of cannabis ingestion on endometriosis-associated pelvic pain and related symptoms.." PloS one, 2021. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0258940
RethinkTHC
RethinkTHC Research Database. "Effects of cannabis ingestion on endometriosis-associated pe..." RTHC-03529. Retrieved from https://rethinkthc.com/research/sinclair-2021-effects-of-cannabis-ingestion
Access the Original Study
Study data sourced from PubMed, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health.
This study breakdown was produced by the RethinkTHC research team. We analyze and report published research findings without making health recommendations. All interpretations are based solely on the published abstract and study data.