Summary of study conclusions by route of administration and dose
| Route of administration | Comparison; dose and conclusion* | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cannabis v. placebo (or no comparison) | Cannabis v. active comparator | ||||||||
| Oral capsule | 0.5 mg nabilone (=) | 1–2 mg nabilone (+) | 2.5 mg dronabinol (+) | 1.5–3 mg levonantradol (++) | 5 mg extract (−) | 10 mg extract (++) | 15 mg extract (++) | 1 mg nabilone (−) | 2 mg nabilone (− −) |
| Intramuscular | 0.25 mg levonantradol (=) | 0.5 mg levonantradol (++) | 1 mg levonantradol (++) | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Smoked 1 puff (+) | 2–8 puffs (+) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
| Oral spray | 14.6 mg THC/13.5 mg CBD nabiximols (++) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Sublingual oil | 5 mg extract (==) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
(++) = cannabis performed significantly better than comparator for pain outcomes; (+) = cannabis performed well in a noncontrolled study; (=) = inconclusive or no difference on pain outcomes; (==) inconclusive or mixed results in a noncontrolled study; (−) = cannabis performed worse than comparator for pain outcomes; (− −) = cannabis did not perform well in a noncontrolled study; CBD = cannabidiol; THC = tetrahydrocannabinol.
↵* This table includes studies where the dosage and route are clear.