Science in Seconds: Cannabinoids

Cannabinoids are able to decrease our capacity to process pain in the brain while having less substance use potential than that of opioids

Cannabinoids are able to decrease our capacity to process pain in the brain while having less substance use potential than that of opioids ()

Ever wonder what happens when your body experiences pain and how cannabinoids influence pain management? If so, step into the world of UConn’s Center for Advancement in Managing Pain (CAMP).

“We’re in a really exciting, potentially transformative time…”

Director of CAMP and UConn Nursing professor of nursing Steven Kinsey has been researching the use cannabinoids since 2007. The focus of his current study is to understand the body’s physiological response to cannabinoids with an overall goal of developing new pharmacological treatments for pain and inflammation that have limited risk of causing substance use disorders.

This includes both the positive effects, such as decreasing pain, inflammation, and stress, but also the abuse potential of cannabinoids and ways to reduce outcomes such as drug withdrawals. This study is currently funded by the National Institute of Health.

CAMP is a diverse group of faculty, researchers, clinicians, students, and others, who all collectively invest their time, research, and curiosity in creating a path toward innovation in pain research. CAMP members are innovators in their respective fields. They investigate individual cell physiology, probe the cannabinoid system, help patients control pain-related stress, and use cutting-edge methods to objectively quantify pain responses in patients.