THERAPEUTIC POTENTIAL OF CANNABINOIDS FOR STROKE: SCOPING REVIEW PROTOCOL

Abstract

Introduction: Each year, approximately 795,000 people experience a new or recurrent stroke, ischemic or hemorrhagic. The current therapeutical approach for acute ischemic stroke includes thrombolysis and mechanical thrombectomy. However, there are no neuroprotective treatment alternatives to improve its neurological outcome. Some components of the endocannabinoid system are altered after ischemic stroke. Cannabinoids may exert neuroprotective effects, but the use of cannabinoid receptor ligands is a factor to consider due to their psychotropic properties. Regardless of the various studies describing the benefit of administering cannabinoids for experimental stroke, several questions remain unanswered since most information is about non-human species. A previous systematic review detected significant heterogeneity among studies, therefore a scoping review was performed to evaluate the feasibility of an updated systematic review and meta-analysis. This scoping review protocol aims to evaluate the therapeutic potential of modulating the endocannabinoid system for stroke. Methods: Published studies (all publication types) will be retrieved from Web of Science, PubMed, Scopus, Ovid, EBSCOhost, and Google Scholar. Eligibility criteria: Clinical or preclinical studies reporting endocannabinoid levels or their effects, or reporting administration of cannabinoid modulators (stimulating or inhibiting their synthesis or metabolism, phytocannabinoids, or synthetic cannabinoids) in patients or models of stroke will be considered for inclusion. Studies written in languages different than Spanish or English that could not be properly translated or whose full-text files could not be retrieved will be excluded. Data charting: Results will be summarized in tabular form. This protocol complies with PRISMA-P.