#72 Notable Clinical Interest
Emerging findings or policy developments worth monitoring closely.
Cannabis use is associated with improved sexual function and orgasm in some women, which may expand treatment options for sexual dysfunction beyond pharmaceutical interventions. Clinicians should be aware of this emerging evidence to counsel patients about potential benefits and risks, particularly since sexual health concerns are commonly underreported in clinical settings. Understanding cannabis’s role in sexual health allows providers to have informed conversations with patients and integrate this information into comprehensive sexual medicine practice.
A 2024 scientific review examined the relationship between cannabis use and sexual function in women, finding that cannabis-infused vaginal suppositories and other cannabis products may enhance orgasmic function and sexual satisfaction in certain populations. The review synthesized existing academic literature on cannabinoid mechanisms, including CB1 and CB2 receptor activity in genital tissues and central nervous system pathways involved in sexual response. While the findings suggest potential therapeutic applications for women experiencing orgasmic dysfunction or low sexual desire, the authors note that clinical evidence remains limited and largely based on observational data rather than large randomized controlled trials. The endocannabinoid system’s role in sexual function is biologically plausible, but standardization of dosing, formulation, and long-term safety profiles for cannabis products used in sexual health contexts remains inadequate. Clinicians should be aware that some patients may self-report improvements in sexual function with cannabis use, though evidence-based treatment guidelines for cannabis in sexual medicine do not yet exist. For now, clinicians should counsel patients that while cannabis shows promise in this domain, better-designed clinical trials are needed before recommending it as a standard treatment for sexual dysfunction in women.
“What we’re seeing in the literature is that cannabinoids can genuinely reduce performance anxiety and pelvic floor tension in women with orgasmic dysfunction, which are often the real barriers to sexual satisfaction, but we need to be rigorous about dosing and formulation because most patients are experimenting without any clinical guidance.”
🏥 While emerging research suggests cannabis may have a role in addressing sexual dysfunction, particularly orgasmic difficulties in some women, clinicians should approach these findings with appropriate caution given the limited sample sizes, heterogeneous study designs, and potential publication bias in this nascent field. The mechanistic explanations remain speculative, and individual responses to cannabis vary substantially based on dose, cannabinoid profile, concurrent medications, and psychological factors that are difficult to control in real-world settings. Important confounders include the placebo effect, which is notably strong in sexual health interventions, and the lack of long-term safety data regarding vaginal cannabis products specifically. Rather than positioning cannabis as a primary treatment, clinicians might consider it as a potential adjunctive option for select patients with documented sexual dysfunction who have not responded to or cannot tolerate conventional interventions, while maintaining open conversations about evidence limitations, legal status in their jurisdiction, and the importance of addressing underlying medical
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