Rheumatoid arthritis patients who use cannabis have lower chances of depression, chronic pain, and anxiety
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic disease caused by our immune system degrading the linings in our joints. The cause has still not been definitively identified, but it causes pain, swelling and stiffness in our joints. Fingers, hands, wrists, and leg and foot joints are most common.
This study was published in March 2025 in the Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings. This is a retrospective study, which means it used medical data previously collected for other reasons. The data came from the NIS (National Inpatient Sample) database of hospital visits maintained by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. Over 3.3 million RA patients were admitted to a hospital from 2016 to 2021. About 1.3% (42,415) patients were classified as cannabis users.
Results:
The mortality rate was significantly lower among cannabis users (0.98% vs 2.71%, P < 0.001).
Cannabis users also incurred lower total hospitalization costs compared to nonusers ($57,773 vs $63,681, P < 0.001).
after adjusting for age, gender, race, and comorbidities, cannabis use in RA patients was associated with a significant decrease in mortality (OR: 0.5, 95% CI: −0.72 to −0.27), depression (OR: 0.47, 95% CI: 0.42 to 0.52), chronic pain (OR: 0.45, 95% CI: 0.39 to 0.51), and anxiety (OR: 0.55, 95% CI: 0.50 to 0.60).
Authors' conclusions:
RA patients using cannabis had lower mortality, depression, chronic pain, and anxiety,
but higher risks of opioid, nicotine, and alcohol use.
Put another way: even though the average cannabis user with RA was more likely to use opioids, nicotine, and alcohol, they still had lower chances of having significant RA symptoms and mortality.
The full text article is here at PubMed Central.
Source:
Shrestha K, Subedi P, Regmi A, Ghimire M, Poudel S, Hashim M, Hasan M, Tagoe C. Inpatient outcomes of rheumatoid arthritis in hospitalized patients using cannabis: data from the National Inpatient Sample. Proc (Bayl Univ Med Cent). 2025 Mar 24;38(3):259-264. doi: 10.1080/08998280.2025.2473863. PMID: 40291104; PMCID: PMC12026033.