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Post-Surgical Pain Overview
- Acute post-surgical pain affects virtually all surgical patients
- A significant minority develop chronic post-surgical pain lasting beyond 3-6 months
- Opioids are the mainstay of acute analgesia but carry dependency risks
- Medical cannabis is explored as an opioid-sparing strategy in specialist centres
Post-surgical pain management is an emerging indication for medical cannabis in the UK, particularly for opioid-sparing approaches.
Opioid-Sparing Evidence
- Cannabinoids and opioids work via different but complementary mechanisms
- Lower opioid doses may achieve equivalent pain control when combined with cannabis
- Observational data suggests reduced opioid requirements in post-surgical patients using cannabis
- Surgical and anaesthetic teams must be informed of cannabis use before any procedure
The opioid-sparing potential of medical cannabis is particularly compelling as surgical teams implement enhanced recovery protocols.
