# Impact of Prescription Opioid Dose Changes on Cannabis Use and Clinical Outcomes

> **NIH NIH R01** · OREGON HEALTH & SCIENCE UNIVERSITY · 2021 · $564,053

## Abstract

Project Summary
With the ongoing opioid epidemic in the United States, alternative options for pain management are urgently
needed. Data from recent ecological and open-label studies suggest that the introduction of medical cannabis
laws are associated with decreased opioid prescribing and fewer overdose deaths, and that new initiations of
cannabis are associated with prescription opioid discontinuations. With the rapid changes in the legal status of
cannabis for medical and recreational purposes, more patients may be seeking cannabis for chronic pain
management and its use as an analgesic is increasing in all age groups. However, the clinical outcomes of
increased cannabis use for pain are unclear and there are calls for prospective empirical data. This proposal is
for a prospective cohort study in a national sample of VA patients. The overall goal of this research is to
improve our understanding of the extent to which cannabis use changes following prescription opioid
discontinuation, and identify clinical outcomes associated with changes in cannabis use for pain. We will recruit
650 patients who are currently prescribed LTOT and have a past-month urine drug test result that is positive
for cannabis/THC. Participants will complete a battery of self-report measures at baseline and every six
months for two years. They will also complete monthly web-based assessments of cannabis use status and
prescription opioid dose. A subset of participants who discontinue prescription opioids will complete qualitative
interviews to better understand how cannabis use fluctuates following opioid discontinuation. The Specific
Aims of this proposal are to characterize changes in cannabis use and symptoms of cannabis use disorder
following prescription opioid dose discontinuation; evaluate associations between changes in opioid dose,
cannabis use, and pain over time; and qualitatively explore patient-reported factors that lead to changes in
cannabis use following prescription opioid discontinuation. The proposed research has broad implications for
clinical care, providing novel data to examine how cannabis use changes following opioid dose modification,
and the clinical impact of these changes. The overarching goal of this research is to generate empirical data to
guide pain management approaches that optimize functional gains and decrease risk of adverse events.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10164746
- **Project number:** 5R01DA048817-03
- **Recipient organization:** OREGON HEALTH & SCIENCE UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Benjamin J Morasco
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $564,053
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-08-01 → 2024-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10164746

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10164746, Impact of Prescription Opioid Dose Changes on Cannabis Use and Clinical Outcomes (5R01DA048817-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10164746. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*