Using Cannabis to Treat Restless Legs Syndrome

April 22, 2026 updated by: Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre

Using Cannabis to Treat Restless Legs Syndrome: A Randomized Placebo Controlled Pilot Safety and Feasibility Trial

Restless Legs Syndrome (RLS) is a disorder that causes painful and uncomfortable sensations in the legs, and its symptoms have a significant impact on sleep and quality of life. Cannabis has been used by some RLS patients as a treatment due to its painkilling and drowsiness effects, however there has never been a clinical research trial investigating cannabis in patients with RLS. A controlled trial is needed to establish how safe and feasible cannabis is as a treatment for RLS. The investigators plan to randomize 30 participants with moderate-to-severe RLS to receive either cannabis or placebo for 8 weeks. The investigators will measure patients sleep quality and quality of life at baseline and 8-week follow-up. The investigators will also monitor patients for any adverse reactions to the study drug.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Recruiting

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
30

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.

Study Locations

  • Canada
    • Ontario
      • Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M5G 2C4
        • Recruiting
        • University Health Network
        • Contact:
      • Toronto, Ontario, Canada, M4N3M5
        • Recruiting
        • Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre
        • Contact:

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • ≥25 years of age
  • diagnosis of RLS based on the International RLS Study Group criteria
  • refractory RLS symptoms despite use of dopaminergic and/or alpha-2-delta ligand therapy
  • onset of RLS at least 6 months before screening

Exclusion Criteria:

  • sleep disordered breathing, or sleep disordered breathing that is not adequately controlled on therapy (apnea-hypopnea index of >15)
  • cannabis use within 4 weeks of study enrollment
  • known allergy to cannabis, cannabinoids or palm/coconut oil
  • Currently pregnant or breast-feeding (a negative urine pregnancy test must be obtained for women of childbearing potential during pretreatment evaluation)
  • Active substance abuse
  • Ischemic heart disease with unstable angina or recent acute coronary syndrome in the last 3 months, uncontrolled arrhythmias, poorly controlled hypertension
  • Serious liver disease
  • History of schizophrenia or any other psychotic disorder

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Quadruple

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Experimental: Cannabis Arm
5:1 CBD:THC oral cannabis
Drug: Cannabis oil
5:1 CBD:THC oral formulation with a concentration of 25 mg/g CBD and 5 mg/g THC in a pharmaceutical grade medium chain triglyceride (MCT) oil.
Other Names:
  • MPL-005
Placebo Comparator: Placebo Arm
Oral placebo
Drug: Cannabis placebo
Placebo oil

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Incidence of Adverse Events and Serious Adverse Events
Time Frame: 8 weeks
We will measure the rate and type of treatment related adverse events
8 weeks
Rate of Study Completion
Time Frame: 8 weeks
The percentage of enrolled participants who complete the study
8 weeks

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Change from Baseline in Restless Legs Syndrome Quality of Life (RLSQoL) at 8 Weeks
Time Frame: 8 weeks
The Summary Score of the RLSQoL will be calculated, ranging from 0 (worse quality of life) to 100 (best quality of life).
8 weeks
Change from Baseline in Self-Reported Quality of Life on the Short Form-36 (SF-36) Health Survey Questionnaire at 8 Weeks
Time Frame: 8 weeks
The SF-36 Questionnaire has 36-items that covers eight areas: physical functioning, bodily pain, role limitations due to physical health problems, role limitations due to personal or emotional problems, emotional well-being, social functioning, energy/fatigue, and general health perceptions. Scores for each domain range from 0 to 100, with a higher score indicating better health.
8 weeks
Change in Restless Legs Syndrome Severity using the International RLS Study Group Rating Scale from Baseline to Follow-up
Time Frame: 8 weeks

The International RLS Study Group Rating Scale measures RLS severity based on the following summary scale:

Very severe=31-40 points Severe=21-30 points Moderate=11-20 points Mild=1-10 points None=0 points
8 weeks
Change in Sleep Quality as assessed by the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index from Baseline to Follow-Up
Time Frame: 8 weeks
Sleep quality as assessed by the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index. The questionnaire is scored on a range from 0-21 points, with "0" indicating no difficulty and "21" indicating severe difficulties in all areas.
8 weeks
Change in Daytime Sleepiness as assessed by the Epworth Sleepiness Scale from Baseline to Follow-Up
Time Frame: 8 weeks
Scores on Epworth Sleepiness Scale range from range from 0 to 24, with higher scores indicating higher average sleep propensity in daily life (daytime sleepiness).
8 weeks
Change in Mood as assessed by the Beck Depression Inventory from Baseline to Follow-Up
Time Frame: 8 weeks
The Beck Depression Inventory has 21 questions that are scored on a range of 0-63 points. Higher scores indicate more severe depression.
8 weeks
Change in Objective Sleep Quality as Measured by Actigraphy from Baseline to Follow-Up
Time Frame: 8 weeks
Objective sleep quality will be assessed using wrist actigraphy that will be provided with the home sleep apnea test. Sleep efficiency will be calculated by dividing the amount of time spent asleep (in minutes) by the total amount of time in bed (in minutes).
8 weeks
Change in Leg Movements as Measured by Ankle Actigraphy from Baseline to Follow-Up
Time Frame: 8 weeks
Ankle actigraphy will be used to count the number of leg movements that occur throughout the night.
8 weeks
Change in Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) Severity (as measured by the apnea-hypopnea index) from Baseline to Follow-Up
Time Frame: 8 weeks
Measured by the apnea-hypopnea index (AHI). AHI quantifies the number of apneas and hypopneas per hour of sleep. It will be measured using a home sleep monitor or a readout from a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) machine.
8 weeks

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre

Collaborators

Collaborators

An organization other than the sponsor that provides support for a clinical study. This support may include activities related to funding, design, implementation, data analysis, or reporting.
University Health Network, Toronto

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
July 25, 2025

Primary Completion (Estimated)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
December 1, 2026

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
May 1, 2027

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
March 3, 2025

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
March 3, 2025

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
March 7, 2025

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
April 28, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
April 22, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
April 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 4752

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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