A temporary spike: Investigating Lennox-Gastaut syndrome incidence in the US following FDA approval of cannabidiol.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

In June 2018, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved pharmaceutical grade cannabidiol (CBD; Epidiolex®) for the treatment of seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome (LGS). We sought to examine whether the FDA approval of CBD was associated with changes in LGS diagnostic practices in the United States.

Methods

We computed the annual number of new LGS diagnoses in the United States from 2017 to 2023 using a large, population-based database of electronic health records.

Results

We identified a temporary increase in the number of new LGS diagnoses in 2019: the incidence rate rose by roughly 30% from 2018 to 2019, and almost 60% from 2017 to 2019, before it returned to pre-FDA CBD approval baseline (2020-2023).

Significance

This tempor

SUBMITTER: Marcinski Nascimento KJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12807586 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature