Cannabidiol linked to better social, executive function in tuberous sclerosis complex

Key takeaways:

• Survey responses reflected positive language and communication outcomes after cannabidiol use.
• Further improvements were noted regarding patients’ mood, emotional and social function.

LOS ANGELES — Treatment with cannabidiol in young people with tuberous sclerosis complex led to significant improvements in several cognitive, behavioral and executive domains, data from ongoing survey show.

“I think, in most seizure medicine, the focus is on the seizure outcome. But many times, the non-seizure outcome drives the health-related quality of life,” Debopam Samanta, MD, a child neurologist at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences and medical director at Arkansas Children’s Comprehensive Epilepsy Program, told Healio during a poster presentation at the American Epilepsy Society annual meeting.

Samanta and colleagues examined caregiver-reported nonseizure outcomes following treatment with Epidiolex (Jazz Pharmaceuticals), a plant-derived formulation of cannabidiol (CBD), in those with tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC), a rare neurocutaneous disorder that affects multiple organs, including the brain, while also affecting cognition.

They initiated the Behavior, Cognition and More (BECOME) study, an ongoing cross-sectional survey given to 55 caregivers regarding 55 patients with TSC (mean age, 16.5 years), many of whom were prescribed antiseizure medications and were diagnosed with concomitant developmental delay or psychiatric conditions. All patients were treated with 100 mg oral solution Epidiolex for at least 6 months.

The survey consisted of multiple choice and ranked-order questions in which respondents compared patients’ progress with CBD during the previous month to the period prior to CBD initiation with either a five- or seven-point Likert scale. The researchers analyzed several domains, including alertness, language and communication, cognition and executive function, which featured multiple related subdomains.

According to the results, caregivers responded that following treatment, 81% of patients could learn new things, 75% could follow simple instructions, 70% were more certain of their surroundings, 70% demonstrated more alertness, 68% could better maintain attention and 65% could more easily accomplish visuo-spatial tasks.

Data further showed that patients demonstrated significant improvements with respect to language utilization, interpersonal communication of wants and needs as well as communication which reflected their mental state.

The researchers additionally reported that caregiver responses reflected patient improvements with mood, facial expressions that indicated happiness, greater social engagement and interactions, as well as positive changes with respect to feelings of frustration, anxiety, repetitive behaviors and aggression.

“In these patients with tuberous sclerosis, they have significant improvement in cognition, executive function as well as emotional and social wellbeing after being on Epidiolex,” Samanta said.