Some of the IDF soldiers hospitalized at the orthopedic department at the Sheba Medical Center near Tel Aviv are being treated with medical cannabis to relieve pain, according to Israel Today.
The group of about five soldiers are given cannabis extract oil droplets, to avoid the high from the drug. This is the first time patients, soldiers or civilians, at a rehabilitation department are permitted access to cannabis for medical purposes.
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“there were many requests to use medical cannabis, and once one soldier asked, suddenly everybody else wanted some, too, ” said Dr. Zaki (Isaac) Ziv-Ner, director of the department of orthopedic rehabilitation at Sheba.
“I didn’t want to keep from them something they might need and that could help, but I also didn’t want smoking parties in the sculpture garden, and for soldiers to miss their appointments, ” he added.
The solution Dr. Ziv-Ner found was to give out cannabis oil in drops, a delivery system devoid of the intoxicating effect, which still helps relieve pain.
“I decided I was open to anything that would help the soldiers, but to use it rationally, ” Dr. Ziv Ner said.
using effective pain medication is particularly important at the orthopedic rehabilitation department, where patients typically stay for very long periods. Being able to go through the rehabilitation work with less pain is enormously important to soldiers learning to function without their lost limbs.
“The young guys are very excited” about the new treatment, said the mother of one of the hospitalized soldiers. “But I explained to my son that cannabis has negative aspects, to the point of damaging the immune system.”
