The medical cannabis product cannabidiol oil — marketed as RSHO-X — is showing promise as an epilepsy treatment, according to CFN Media Group. The digital media network, dedicated to legal cannabis, cites research from Mexico to underscore the effectiveness of the treatment, particularly in difficult-to-treat forms of epilepsy.
The network cited results of a survey among parents of Mexican children with treatment-refractory disease. The study had investigated 43 families, who stated that CBD oil was linked to a more than 80 percent reduction in seizures among these children. A majority, 70 percent, used the RSHO-X cannabidiol oil.
The survey also found that more than 20 percent of patients decreased their use of other antiepileptic medications as a result of the cannabidiol treatment.
According to a press release, RSHO-X is currently the only legal option for import of cannabidiol oil into Mexico. RSHO-X, or Real Scientific Hemp Oil-X, is a cannabis-derived product that contains only minute amounts of THC, the psychoactive ingredient of cannabis.
RSHO-X was also the focus of a study in children with the severe epileptic disease Lennox-Gastaut syndrome. The study, performed by Mexican child neurologist Dr. Saul Garza Morales, demonstrated that 84 percent of the 39 children had reduced motor seizures when treated with the oil.
Seven of these patients saw their seizures completely vanish during the four-month study. A majority also reported improvements in quality of life. The study also found no side effects of the treatment.
The oil has been developed by Medical Marijuana, a company that, as the name implies, focuses on the medical application of cannabis products. Medical Marijuana is the first publicly traded cannabis company in the U.S.
In addition to Mexico, the company is working to secure importation rights of RSHO-X to several other South and Latin American countries, including Brazil, Paraguay, and Argentina. In Brazil, the company has already obtained importation rights.
The goal is to prove the effectiveness of the compound in epilepsy and a number of other conditions, and commercialize the products in these areas. The efforts in these countries are seen as a grassroots approach to set the product apart from unlicensed competitors.
