CBD shows promise in curbing opioid cravings
NCT ID NCT03787628
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study tested whether cannabidiol (CBD) can reduce cravings and prevent relapse in people with opioid use disorder who are already taking standard medications like buprenorphine or methadone. Thirty-five participants received either CBD or a placebo for 28 days while in residential treatment. Researchers tracked side effects, cravings, and drug use through questionnaires and urine tests over a 10-week period.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Cannabidiol (CBD)
- What this could lead to
- If it works, CBD could become an add-on treatment to help people with opioid use disorder stay in recovery and avoid relapse.
- What could go wrong
- This was a small, early-phase study with only 35 participants, so results may not apply broadly. CBD may not reduce craving or prevent relapse better than placebo.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
-
Phase 2
Tests whether the treatment actually works, and watches for side effects, in a larger group.
- Participants
-
35 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
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May 2022
- Finished
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Mar 2024
- Lead sponsor
-
Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
-
18 years and older
- Sex
-
Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
-
Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Ability to read and speak English and has provided written informed consent. * Age of 18-65 years (inclusive). * Meeting criteria for an OUD according to the MINI for ≥ 3 months before screening. * Self-report of opioid use in the 60 days before screening; verified by treatment center records. * On a stable dose of ≥12 mg buprenorphine, either alone, or in combination with naloxone (buprenorphine/naloxone ratio of 4/1) for at least 7 days prior to starting and for the duration of the treatment phase of the study. OR, receiving methadone maintenance therapy for at least 7 days prior to starting and for the duration of the treatment phase of the study. * If female, being surgically sterile or willing to use birth control (e.g., oral contraceptives, condoms, intrauterine device) or willingness to abstain from sex throughout the study. * Body Mass Index (BMI) between 17.5 and 35 kg/m2; total body weight \> 110 lb (50 kg). * Currently in residential treatment at the Tarzana Treatment Center. Exclusion Criteria: * History of sensitivity to a CBD product or any of the ingredients in the study drug, including glycerin or gelatin. * A condition that may affect drug absorption (e.g., gastrectomy). * Taking a medications that has clinically significant interactions with CBD or are contraindicated for the study (check with study physician). * Positive urine test for THC at screening. * Self-report of using CBD at screening. * PK analysis at screening showing evidence of CBD use (a signal that is ≥ three times the background noise at the corresponding CBD retention time and MS2 transition). * Physiological dependence on alcohol or a sedative-hypnotic benzodiazepine drug. * Current medication-assisted treatment with naltrexone. * Acute opioid withdrawal symptoms, as defined by a score on the COWS \> 4. * Clinical laboratory finding of AST or ALT \> 3 times the upper limit of normal (ULN) or bilirubin \> 1.5 times ULN. * AIDS or HIV positive status (because treatment medications have potential interactions with CBD). * Pregnancy or lactation. * Clinically significant EKG abnormalities, as determined by the study physician, including the following: QTc \>450 msec (men) or \>470 (women) or QRS interval \>120 msec (If QTc or QRS interval exceed these cutoff points, EKG will be repeated twice and the average of the three QTc values used to determine eligibility.), congenital long QT syndrome, history of prolonged QT in the 3 months before screening, corrected QT interval (Fridericia's - QTcF) \>450 msec (male) or \>470 msec (female) or history of risk factors for Torsades de Pointes. * For women: any value outside reference ranges on a hormonal battery \[estradiol, follicle-stimulating hormone, free thyroxine index, luteinizing hormone, prolactin, T3 uptake, thyroid-stimulating hormone, and thyroxine\], followed by an abnormal ovarian ultrasound finding. * Clinically significant cardiovascular, hematologic, hepatic, renal, or endocrine abnormalities, as determined by the study physician. * Meeting criteria on the MINI for schizophrenia, Bipolar I disorder, psychotic disorder, having active suicidal ideation, or suicide attempt in the past 12 months. Or, answers "yes" to questions 4 or 5 on C-SSRS. NOTE: Participants with other psychiatric conditions, such as major depression, generalized anxiety, dysthymia, social phobia or specific phobia may be enrolled in the study if they are clinically stable. * On the cue-induced opiate craving task at screening, the participant does not have a score of at least 25 (on a visual analogue scale with a maximum score of 100) for at least one image within one category. Note: Groups of images may be separated into smoking cues, pills and bottles, and injection paraphernalia. For example, for injection cues, a picture of a needle and syringe may elicit a craving response, though other images in the same group (i.e., picture of arm with vein bulging) do not elicit craving.
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
Contacts and locations
Locations
-
Tarzana Treatment Centers
Tarzana, California, 91356, United States
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Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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