UK Medical Cannabis Registry: A Clinical Outcomes Analysis for Autism Spectrum Disorder.

This was an observational study — researchers watched what happened rather than assigning treatments. It can show that two things happen together, but it cannot show that one caused the other.

The number of people who took part is not stated in this record, so the result cannot be judged on size.

The study ran for 18 months.

The researchers concluded: "Treatment with CBMPs was associated with improvements in HRQoL, anxiety, and sleep outcomes in autistic patients over an 18-month period. Given the absence of a control group, these findings represent associations rather than proven treatment effects."

This record does not state:

• the ages of the people who took part

This is a plain-language summary of one paper's abstract, not medical advice. Talk to your child's clinician before changing anything.

Journal: Neuropsychopharmacology reports

Year: 2026

Design: Observational Study

Intervention: cannabis-based medicinal products

Co-occurring conditions: Anxiety

Authors: Arushika Aggarwal, Simon Erridge, Madhur Varadpande, Evonne Clarke, Katy McLachlan, Ross Coomber, Muhammed Asghar, Urmila Bhoskar, Matthieu Crews, Andrea De Angelis, Muhammad Imran, Fariha Kamal, Laura Korb, Gracia Mwimba, Simmi Sachdeva-Mohan, Gabriel Shaya, James J Rucker, Mikael H Sodergren

INTRODUCTION: Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder associated with distressed behaviors and psychological challenges. This study aims to evaluate the change in health-related quality of life (HRQoL), anxiety, and sleep quality in autistic individuals prescribed cannabis-based medicinal products (CBMPs). METHOD: This observational case series analyzed data from the UK Medical Cannabis Registry on autistic adults treated with CBMPs. Demographic and clinical data were collected at baseline, with patient-reported outcome measures assessed up to 18 months. Primary outcomes included changes in anxiety (GAD-7), sleep quality (SQS), and HRQoL (EQ-5D-5L). Secondary outcomes included the incidence of adverse events. Statistical significance was indicated by p < 0.050. RESULTS: One-hundred and thirty individuals met the inclusion criteria. GAD-7 (p < 0.001) and SQS (p < 0.001) scores improved from baseline to 18 months. EQ-5D-5L index values showed improvement from baseline (0.43 ± 0.30) to 18 months (0.51 ± 0.32, p < 0.001), and PGIC scores increased from 1 month (5.43 ± 1.49) to 18 months (5.65 ± 1.32, p = 0.013). Twenty-five participants (19.23%) reported a total of 232 (178.46%) adverse events, with most being mild (n = 88; 67.69%) or moderate (n = 99; 76.15%). CONCLUSION: Treatment with CBMPs was associated with improvements in HRQoL, anxiety, and sleep outcomes in autistic patients over an 18-month period. Given the absence of a control group, these findings represent associations rather than proven treatment effects. Further high-quality randomized controlled trials are needed to confirm the long-term efficacy and safety of CBMPs in ASD.

Neuropsychopharmacology reports, 2026

PMID 42387975

DOI 10.1002/npr2.70146

This record was extracted from the paper's PubMed abstract and metadata. Full-text methods and risk-of-bias details were not reviewed.