Topical CBD helps thumb basal joint arthritis

A phase 2, double-blind, randomized controlled trial focused on the topical effectiveness of CBD in improving thumb basal joint arthritis (type of osteoarthritis) was published in July 2022 in The Journal of Hand Surgery.

The study included 18 patients randomized to 2 weeks of twice-daily application of a topical CBD cream mixed with shea butter, or shea butter without CBD. The CBD cream included a CBD concentration of 6.2mg/ml.

CBD crystalline isolate powder derived from hemp (99.07% pure) was used. The product was rated for personal care product formulations.

Patients reported improvements from baseline for the key outcome measures compared to the control group:

• Visual Analog Scale pain
• Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder, and Hand
• Single Assessment Numeric Evaluation scores
• There were similar improvements identified with range of motion, grip, and pinch strength

"topical CBD treatment demonstrated significant improvements in thumb basal joint arthritis-related pain and disability without adverse events."

The study abstract and "section snippets" are available here at ScienceDirect.com.