Cannabis Helped Endometriosis Pain, Especially When Inhaled | Research

The takeaway

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.

Gynecologists, endometriosis patients, medical cannabis researchers

Over 16,000 tracked sessions showed inhaled cannabis was more effective for pain than oral forms

What the researchers 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.

Why it 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 numbers in context

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 the study worked

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).

What this study cannot 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.

How to read the evidence

Large retrospective dataset with detailed session-level tracking, limited by self-report and lack of controls.

When this study was published

Data from April 2017 to February 2020.

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.

Questions still open

Would controlled clinical trials confirm the delivery-method-dependent efficacy patterns? How does cannabis compare to standard endometriosis treatments in head-to-head trials?

Common 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.

Read the original research

Effects of cannabis ingestion on endometriosis-associated pelvic pain and related symptoms.

PloS one, 16(10), e0258940

View on PubMed ↗Publisher’s paper ↗

Citation

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