Dystonia and Huntington’s Disease

Is it possible that cannabinoid could become the answer to support Dystonia in Huntington’s Disease (HD)? Numerous studies over the past decades have looked at cannabinoid, which is the active component of cannabis as a potential treatment for movement disorders in several neurodegenerative conditions. During multiple studies patients have shown several different types of motor problems, including chorea (the most common symptom), and dystonia, which has a high frequency both in adolescent cases and all through disease progression (Journal of Sport & Exercise Psychology, 1997 p. 2). It is essential to develop your knowledge pertaining to the health effects of Cannabinoids and the disorder called Dystonia.

What is Dystonia? Dystonia is a motor issue related to the Huntington’s Disease which is described as painful, prolonged muscle contractions that causes involuntary repetitive twisting and sustained muscle contractions. The symptoms are known to start in one body region like the neck, face, vocal cords, arms or legs, and could possibly spread to other parts of the body. The seriousness shifts from individual to individual. Numerous individuals who have dystonia can keep up a generally typical way of life. Others may require full-time help. Dystonia is the third most regular movement disorder, influencing an expected 500,000 grown-ups and young adults in North America. There are many types and groups of dystonia like

* Blepharospasm – spasmodic winking from involuntary contraction of the periocular muscles.

* Oromandibular – affecting the jaw, tongue or peri-oral.

* Laryngeal – affecting the use of the voice.

* Cervical – turning (torticollis), tilting (laterocollis), flexion (anterocollis) or extension (retrocollis) of the neck

* One limb – focal dystonia during a very specific movement such as writing and is considered “task-specific,” such as writer’s cramp, or non-task-specific such as foot dystonia as a symptom of Parkinson’s disease (The John Hopkins University, Nd).

What is cannabinoid? Cannabinoids is one of over eighty chemicals found in the cannabis sativa plant (WebMD, 2019). According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) is the major active ingredient, cannabidiol makes up approximately 40% of cannabis extracts. Cannabidiol appears to prevent the breakdown of a chemical in the brain that affects pain, mood, and mental function. A study was conducted on early onset Huntington’s Disease patients with cannabinoids. The study showed improvement of motor symptoms mainly due to alleviation of dystonia cannabinoid treatments. Results: The UHDRS motor score and the dystonia sub score (±SD) improved from 70.9 (25.5) to 60.6 (26.9) with a mean change of 10.3 [95% CI 6.0–14.6] and from 12.3 (4.0) to 8.0 (3.6) with a mean change of 4.3 [95% CI 2.3–6.3], respectively (both p = 0.018). Conclusion: Improvement of motor symptoms, mainly dystonia, led to several relevant improvements from a global clinical perspective such as improvement of care, gait and fine motor skills and weight gain.

Conclusion: Cannabinoids have shown some positive effects to treating dystonia. However, there are many studies conducted and some research has shown that cannabinoids have insufficient evidence in diseases like Bipolar disorder, Epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease and many more. However, there is another option which is becoming very popular and is expected to grow by leaps and bounds due to the history and present results from individuals who are having positive experiences. It is called CBD Hemp Oil. CBD Hemp oil is cannabis oil that has a significant content of cannabidiol. It is made from the flowers, leaves and stalks of hemp and not from its seeds like hemp oil. Hopefully, as time and research continue, the true answer to many disorders will become greater as science prevails. 

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References:

Effects of Huntington’s disease on midline crossing ability. (1997). Journal of Sport & Exercise Psychology, 19(2), S121. 

Journal of Huntington’s Disease, (2018), Cannabinoids for Treatment of Dystonia in Huntington’s Disease

The John Hopkins University

WebMD, (2019) Cannabidiol

 https://www.webmd.com/vitamins/ai/ingredientmono-1439/cannabidiol

Written by Paul Thacker, 3/30/2019

About the writer: Paul has been an enthusiast in the Health & Wellness Industry for approximately 20 years. His greatest experience was supporting health issues with the mangosteen juice in 2004. He loves writing and presently is on the Presidents list at Grand Canyon University (GCU), with a 4.0 GPA. He is acquiring a Bachelor of Science in Information Technology with an Emphasis in Cybersecurity. He chose the Health & Wellness Industry because he enjoys helping people and believe there is an answer or solution for all things like health, wealth, life, and finances. He believes CBD Hemp will be a greater experience than the mangosteen juice for millions soon. The ultimate purpose in life is to always be clear and concise in everything you do.