Cannabis Use Patterns Among Adults Living With Chronic Pain Before and During the COVID Pandemic: Insights From the COVID-19 Cannabis Health Study

TL;DR

This study explores how cannabis use for chronic pain changed before and during the pandemic, focusing on factors like age and ethnicity.

Contribution

The study reveals how the pandemic altered cannabis consumption methods and identifies sociodemographic factors linked to chronic pain-related cannabis use.

Findings

Participants using cannabis for chronic pain were more likely to use a CBD/THC ratio.

Smoking decreased while edibles and tinctures increased during the pandemic.

Younger and Hispanic/Latino individuals had higher odds of using cannabis for chronic pain.

Abstract

This study aims to identify sociodemographic factors associated with cannabis use for chronic pain management before and after COVID-19 was declared a pandemic. Furthermore, it seeks to compare cannabis use patterns in adults with and without chronic pain.

We analyzed US-based responses from the COVID-19 Cannabis Health Study, a cross-sectional online survey administered via REDCap between March 2020 and March 2022. All respondents were cannabis consumers in the past year. Cannabis use patterns and chronic pain were self-reported via the COVID-19 Cannabis Health Questionnaire. Statistical analysis included Chi-square tests, Fisher's exact tests, t-tests, and multivariable logistic regression with a two-tailed alpha of 0.05 for significance.

Among 2243 participants, 50.3% consumed cannabis to manage chronic pain. Younger age (< 40 years; aOR: 3.20, 95% CI: 2.59–3.96), Hispanic/Latino ethnicity (aOR: 2.20, 95% CI: 1.56–3.05), and higher income levels (> $100,000 annually; aOR: 1.69, 95% CI: 1.25–2.29) were associated with higher odds of consuming cannabis to manage chronic pain. Participants using cannabis for chronic pain were more likely to use a CBD/THC ratio. The pandemic led to increased dosages and changes in consumption methods: 40.5% increased their cannabis dose, smoking as the primary method declined from 62.2% before the pandemic to 34.5% afterward, while edibles rose from 7.9% to 30.9%, and tinctures from 3.2% to 8.6%. Route changes varied with chronic pain status.

There was a shift from smoking to nonsmoking methods to manage chronic pain. Those who were younger and those of Hispanic/Latino ethnicity had higher odds of using cannabis for chronic pain.

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