Researchers studied a non-invasive brain stimulation technique called rTMS to see if it could help people with moderate to severe cannabis use disorder. The study involved 18 participants who received high-frequency rTMS over a specific brain area. They tested three different treatment schedules, ranging from 2 to 5 weeks, and followed participants for a full year.
Over the 12-month follow-up, the treatment was associated with improvements. Participants reported reduced psychological dependence on cannabis, less craving, lower severity of their cannabis use disorder, and less frequent use. The treatment was well-tolerated with no significant adverse events reported. The study did not find consistent differences in results between the three different treatment schedules.
It is important to be cautious about these results. This was a very small, open-label study, which means everyone knew they were receiving the treatment. There was no comparison group receiving a sham or placebo treatment. This makes it hard to know how much of the improvement was due to the rTMS itself versus other factors like participant expectations. The findings are promising but preliminary, and much larger, more rigorous studies are needed to confirm if rTMS is an effective treatment for cannabis dependence.