● Review the ancient origins of cannabis medicine. ● Discuss the medical use of cannabis in the US prior to the 20th century. ● Review the history of US federal legislation, prohibition, and criminalization of cannabis in the 20th century. ● Explain the origins and reasoning behind the opposing positions in the debate about cannabis and cannabis medicine in the US in the 20th century. ● Discuss the sequence of scientific findings that led to the discovery of the Endocannabinoid System ECS. ● List the major components of the Endocannabinoid System ECS. ● Discuss the beginnings of legalization and decriminalization of medical cannabis and cannabis in the US at the end of the 20th century. Recognize the taxonomy of the cannabis plant and describe the different subspecies. ● Understand why using the term “cannabis” and avoiding the use of the term ‘marijuana’ is prudent for healthcare professionals. ● Describe the reason the terms “strains” and “cultivars” are problematic or insufficient in describing the different varieties of cannabis. ● Define and describe chemovars. ● Define and describe cannabinoids, terpenes, terpenoids, flavonoids, and the additional components and chemical compounds of cannabis. ● Define and describe hemp. ● Differentiate between the colloquial use of cannabis and hemp. ● Describe basic cultivation and production practices Explain the pitfalls of drawing a distinction between medical cannabis and recreational cannabis. ● Explain the risks of legalizing cannabis for medical purposes prior to educating clinicians. ● Describe the reasons patients turn to self-directed care when trying cannabis treatment. ● Describe the sources patients turn to for information on cannabis treatment. ● List the different ways patients access cannabis. ● Describe the problems that arise when patients purchase cannabis under self-directed care. ● List and describe the common routes of administration that cannabis patients may use. ● Describe the different dosing methods of cannabis. ● Recount the history of the discovery of the endocannabinoid system ECS. ● Explain the role and significance of the ECS for human health. ● Identify the principal components of the ECS. ● Explain the difference between CB1 and CB2 receptors. ● Explain the function of the primary endogenous ligands of the ECS. ● Compare the chemical structures of the endogenous ligands. ● Explain the basic chemistry of endocannabinoid signaling. ● Discuss examples of some medical conditions currently known to be related to ECS dysfunction or deficiency. ● Describe the pharmacodynamics of THC. ● Describe the common effects of THC experienced by patients. ● Describe the pharmacodynamics of CBD. ● Describe the common effects of CBD that patients experience. ● List the different minor cannabinoids. ● Describe terpenes. ● Describe and understand the difference between monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes, and triterpenoids. ● Describe flavonoids. ● Understand the difference between flavones, flavonols, and flavanones. ● Describe the difference between using the whole plant versus isolates for treatment. ● Describe the role of the biphasic curve in treatment. ● Describe Marinol generic name: dronabinol and Cesamet generic name: nabilone. ● Define the CBD:THC ratio. ● Explain the synergistic effect of THC and CBD. ● List the different types of cannabis products. ● Explain the significance of lab testing and labeling. ● Describe the areas of information that lab testing should cover. ● Describe why testing and labeling is relevant to consumer safety and patient care.
