Add-on treatment with Epidiolex — an oral form of cannabidiol (CBD) — effectively drops the frequency of seizures in people with Dravet syndrome and Lennox‑Gastaut syndrome (LGS), regardless of co-administration with the anti-seizure medication clobazam, according to a review study.
The findings, which suggest that CDB may have its own anti-epileptic properties, contradict current theories stating that CBD’s benefits are due only to its ability to increase clobazam’s availability in the body, which have restricted its prescription in Europe.
Nevertheless, further studies are needed to clarify whether and to what extent clobazam boosts CBD’s anti-epileptic effects, the researchers noted.
The review study, “Cannabidiol efficacy and clobazam status: A systematic review and meta‐analysis,” was published in the journal Epilepsia.
CBD, the major non-psychoactive cannabinoid (active component) in the cannabis plant, is suggested to have anti-seizure, anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, neuroprotective, and immunomodulatory properties.