What Did Thai Parents Know About CBD for Childhood Epilepsy?

Short answer: most respondents in one Thai pediatric-epilepsy clinic reported limited knowledge of CBD, even though many were interested in future research. Only a small subgroup had used CBD, so their experience should not be treated as a clinical efficacy trial.

Who participated

Ngampoopun and colleagues surveyed 166 parents or guardians of children with epilepsy at a pediatric neurology clinic in Bangkok. The cross-sectional questionnaire examined experience, knowledge, and opinions regarding CBD after Thailand legalized it for intractable epilepsy.

How many families had used CBD?

Nine percent of respondents reported CBD experience. Among that small subgroup, 56.25% reported reduced seizure frequency, but none reported that the child became seizure-free. Products were obtained from varied sources, including folk healers and foreign products.

Because only a small fraction of the 166 respondents had used CBD, percentages within the user subgroup can represent very few families. They should be read with the underlying count in mind.

What parents knew—and did not know

The survey reported that 80.72% did not know which CBD compound was used to treat epilepsy, and 89.16% were unaware of CBD side effects. Despite those gaps, 77.11% expressed willingness to participate in a future CBD trial.

This combination—limited knowledge but high research interest—supports better clinician communication and structured research rather than reliance on informal products.

Why the reported associations require caution

The authors used logistic regression to identify factors associated with CBD use, including the number of anti-seizure medicines and knowledge of treatment and side effects. Several odds ratios were large, but their confidence intervals were extremely wide. Wide intervals indicate substantial uncertainty, commonly caused by small event counts.

An odds ratio from a cross-sectional survey does not establish that knowledge caused CBD use or that CBD caused seizure improvement.

Survey evidence is different from treatment evidence

Parents can provide essential observations about seizures, adverse effects, access, and decision-making. Self-reported retrospective information is nevertheless vulnerable to recall, expectation, product uncertainty, and lack of a placebo comparison.

Randomized evidence for purified prescription CBD applies most directly to specified epilepsy syndromes, doses, and monitored pharmaceutical products. It should not be automatically transferred to unverified consumer preparations.

Questions families and clinicians should document

• What epilepsy syndrome and seizure types are present?
• Was the product prescription-grade and analytically characterized?
• What were the CBD and THC concentrations?
• What dose was given and how was it titrated?
• Were seizure counts recorded before and during treatment?
• What other anti-seizure medications were used?
• Were adverse effects and laboratory monitoring documented?

The practical takeaway

The survey reveals a knowledge and access problem, not a treatment verdict. Some parents perceived fewer seizures, but the CBD-user subgroup was small, products varied, and no child reportedly became seizure-free. The strongest finding is the need for accessible education, product clarity, and carefully monitored clinical research.

Source: Ngampoopun M, Nabangchang C, Suwanpakdee P. “Survey of local cannabidiol use in parents of children with epilepsy in Thailand: the prevalence, perceptions, and knowledge.” PubMed PMID 35883129; doi:10.1186/s42238-022-00155-8.

This article is educational and does not provide medical advice.