New study has revealed that liquid marijuana extract can be used for treating severe epilepsy.

It is also found that the new treatment works effectively for patients who have not responded to other treatments.

The study is funded by GW pharmaceuticals, drug maker.

For the study the team had a total of 213 adults and children who are suffering from 12 different types of epilepsy like Dravet syndrome and Lennonx-Gastant syndrome which causes lifelong seizures and intellectual disability.

The adults and children were treated with cannibidiol, a liquid form of medicinal marijuana, for complete three months.

After the course, the results were good.

Cannibidol or the liquid marijuana has some side effects and 12 patients were affected by the side effects and hence they had to be pulled out from the study.

21 percent experienced drowsiness, 17 suffered from diarrhea, 17 percent suffered fatigue and 15 percent had decreased in appetite.

137 participants completed the research study and they all had lower seizure rate of 54 percent.

23 out of the 137 patients and who have completed the study and who had Dravet syndrome had a lowered seizure rate of 53 percent and those who had Lennox-Gastaut syndrome had lowered seizure rate of 55 percent said, Dr. Orrin Devinsky, of New York University Langone Comprehensive Epilepsy Center in New York City.

“So far there have been few formal studies on this marijuana extract. These results are of great interest, especially for the children and their parents who have been searching for an answer for these debilitating seizures,” said Devinsky .

“Prior to this study, there were mainly anecdotal reports and very few formal studies evaluating cannabidiol, a component of cannabis, in treating seizures,” said Dr. Scott Stevens, director of Advanced Clinical Experience in Neurology at North-Shore-LIJ Health System in Manhasset, New York.

The result indicates that medical marijuana can be used for the treatment of epilepsy.