What are the hot topics and clinical trends in internal medicine that clinicians are talking about? An expert internist took some time recently to discuss his thoughts on these issues.

Donald L. Deye, MD, FACP, is a general internist who has practiced for over 30 years at Cambridge Medical Center in Cambridge, MN. He is also Chief Medical Officer for Oakstone, and host of the acclaimed MKSAP Audio Companion.

Patients Are Turning to CBD

Dr. Deye: Up next, CBD. When I type CBD into my Epic chart system, it gets automatically changed into common bile duct. These days, it more often means cannabidiol. In places like Minnesota where I practice, you can get CBD from tobacco shops and some drug stores. In Wisconsin, I’ve seen it in the Grantsburg grocery store at the checkout lane and even in a gas station.

Here is a potpourri of anecdotal cases from my practice:

• It appears that for many patients with migraines, CBD can be very effective at headache prevention. One severe migraineur had the migraines stop completely.

• Patients with pain tell me that it doesn’t make the pain go away, but it makes them pay less attention to the pain. It doesn’t obsess them as much.

• For many of my patients it reduces nausea and can improve spasticity in people with cerebral palsy. I have a couple of patients that have significantly reduced their opiate use with CBD.

• For some, it appears to improve insomnia. One patient told me that she had gone for 20 years with never having a good night’s sleep. She took 15 milligrams of CBD and had her first good night’s sleep in 20 years.