Many women consider using cannabis to treat gynecological conditions

Reviewed by Emily Henderson, B.Sc.Nov 12 2020

A significant number of women would consider using cannabis to treat gynecological conditions, primarily gynecological pain. Women with a history of cannabis use are reported in a study in Journal of Women's Health.

Women who self-medicate with cannabis do so to relieve chronic pelvic pain, menstrual cramps, and pain associated with gynecological cancer or medical procedures such as abortion.

A larger proportion of women who reported ever using cannabis were willing to use cannabis to treat conditions commonly seen in gynecological practices compared to never-users (91.6% vs. 64.6%)."

Leo Han, MD, MPH, and coauthors, from Oregon Health & Science University

This difference was statistically significant.

"Coinciding with the increased perception of cannabis safety is the increased national recognition of the dangers of opioid pain medications," says the authors.

"In this study, a large proportion of those women who had never used cannabis were willing to try it to treat gynecological pain. Fewer, but still a substantial percentage, would use it for procedural pain or other gynecological conditions," says Journal of Women's Health Editor-in-Chief Susan G. Kornstein, MD, Executive Director of the Virginia Commonwealth University Institute for Women's Health, Richmond, VA.