Australian Epilepsy Survey: More Failed Medications Predicted Cannabis Use, and 90% of Adults Reported Seizure Reduction

Australian nationwide online survey conducted through Epilepsy Action Australia's website and Facebook page. 976 responses met inclusion criteria. 39 questions assessed demographics, clinical factors, cannabis use experiences, and attitudes.

This study quantifies what clinicians suspected: people with epilepsy turn to cannabis after conventional treatments fail, and most report benefit. The finding that the number of failed medications predicts cannabis use has practical implications: clinicians managing treatment-resistant epilepsy should proactively discuss cannabis with patients who have exhausted multiple options.

This Australian survey preceded Epidiolex FDA approval (2018) and reflects a period when epilepsy patients had to navigate unregulated cannabis products on their own. The high rate of self-reported benefit (90% in adults) is notable, though self-selection bias (those who benefited continued and thus responded) likely inflates this figure.

Online survey promoted through an epilepsy advocacy organization, creating selection bias toward engaged patients. Self-reported seizure reduction was not verified by medical records or seizure diaries. Respondents who tried cannabis and found it unhelpful may be underrepresented. The cannabis products used were unregulated and uncharacterized.