Results From CBD Clinical Trial to Assess Efficacy on Seizure Frequency in Dogs ‘Encouraging’
Promising, and exciting. Those are the words used by Dr. Stephanie McGrath to describe new findings from a trailblazing pilot study to assess the use of cannabidiol, or CBD, for dogs with epilepsy.
McGrath, a neurologist at Colorado State University’s James L. Voss Veterinary Teaching Hospital, led a small study with 16 pet dogs to assess the short-term effect of CBD on seizure frequency.
Based on her research, McGrath found that 89 percent of dogs who received CBD in the clinical trial had a reduction in the frequency of seizures. Nine dogs were treated with CBD, while seven dogs in a control group were treated with a placebo.
The research took place from 2016 to 2017, and results are published in the June 1 issue of the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association.
Idiopathic epilepsy, which occurs with no known cause, affects up to 5.7% of the pet dog population worldwide, making it the most common canine neurologic condition.
Dogs enrolled in the clinical trial were randomly assigned to the treatment or placebo group. Those in the treatment group received CBD oil for 12 weeks. All of the dogs were required to stay on standard anticonvulsant drugs, including phenobarbital and potassium bromide. The dogs’ owners and CSU medical staff did not know if the animal received CBD or a placebo until the study was complete.