Cannabinoids as a Treatment for Insomnia in Major Depression

Summary

This single-site study is a pilot, three-armed, double-blinded, placebo-controlled randomized controlled trial (RCT) that will determine the feasibility of a definitive RCT investigating the use of cannabis oil as a treatment for insomnia in individuals with MDD. The study will also determine whether standard THC with higher CBD vs lower CBD has a differential impact on insomnia. The study will also analyze other important objective parameters of sleep including total sleep time and sleep efficiency from actigraphy data. Optional polysomnography data may also be collected and analyzed. In addition, standardized, validated instruments will be used to collect data on severity of depressive symptoms, cognitive functioning biological rhythm disruption, daytime sleepiness, health-related quality of life (HRQoL), healthcare resource utilization, work productivity and activity impairment, as well as other side effects, in order to better understand the potential impact of the use of cannabis oil on these important health outcomes.

Timeline

Start

2023-08-28

Primary completion

2025-01-31

Completion

2025-01-31

Publications

• Background Broyd SJ, van Hell HH, Beale C, Yucel M, Solowij N. Acute and Chronic Effects of Cannabinoids on Human Cognition-A Systematic Review. Biol Psychiatry. 2016 Apr 1;79(7):557-67. doi: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2015.12.002. Epub 2015 Dec 8.
• Background Babson KA, Sottile J, Morabito D. Cannabis, Cannabinoids, and Sleep: a Review of the Literature. Curr Psychiatry Rep. 2017 Apr;19(4):23. doi: 10.1007/s11920-017-0775-9.
• Background Gates PJ, Albertella L, Copeland J. The effects of cannabinoid administration on sleep: a systematic review of human studies. Sleep Med Rev. 2014 Dec;18(6):477-87. doi: 10.1016/j.smrv.2014.02.005. Epub 2014 Mar 7.
• Background Kuhathasan N, Dufort A, MacKillop J, Gottschalk R, Minuzzi L, Frey BN. The use of cannabinoids for sleep: A critical review on clinical trials. Exp Clin Psychopharmacol. 2019 Aug;27(4):383-401. doi: 10.1037/pha0000285. Epub 2019 May 23.

Drugs

Indications