The distinct advantage of BOTOX® therapy is its ability to treat a specific target area for pain management or cosmetic applications. The specialists at Manhattan Medicine utilize BOTOX® treatment for pain (including back, neck and shoulder pain) and are able to help patients live healthier, more active lives.
Using ultrasound to localize the origin of the pain, physicians identify the muscle or muscle groups that are generating the pain. After the source of the pain has been located, BOTOX® therapy is administered to treat the pain, controlling it by relaxing the offending muscle or muscle groups.
Patients find that they were "locked up" or regions that were plagued with constant spasm are loosened and mobility is restored.
Who is a Candidate for Pain Management with BOTOX® Treatment?
Pain management with BOTOX® injections allow physicians to effectively treat many forms of pain. Because treatment involves just a few simple injections, most patients tolerate the treatment well. The best way to determine if BOTOX® therapy can be used as a supplement to other forms of pain control is to discuss your individual case with a physician. By carefully analyzing your nerve pain, back pain, or other ailments, a physician will be able to determine if botulinum toxin, the protein that makes up BOTOX® injections, can help ease your pain and give you the relief you need.
Which Pain Symptoms Can Botox Successfully Treat?
Headache
Botox® gained FDA approval for the prevention of chronic migraine headaches. In 2010, two randomized double-blind, placebo-controlled studies were conducted using 1,384 patients. The pooled results demonstrated that onobotulium toxin Botox® is an effective preventative treatment for chronic migraines. Based on these study results, in October of 2010 the U.S. FDA approved BOTOX® injections to prevent headaches in adult patients with chronic migraines. BOTOX® prevents the recurrence of migraines for up to three months when used as directed - which means undergoing up to 39 very small injections into different sites of the head and neck. And interestingly, most of these injection sites are the same ones used to treat facial wrinkles.
Arthritis
In preliminary reports, Botox® was found to help shoulder, knee, and hip pain cause by osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, and psoriatic arthritis. One small study of patients with arthritis shoulder pain found that 38 percent of those who got a single Botox® injection showed improvement on pain scores, compared with 9 percent who got a placebo shot. Allergen is beginning to study Botox for knee arthritis pain.
Neck Pain
Do you have cervical dystonia? Cervical dystonia is a condition that causes muscles in your neck to spasm and tighten without your control. The spasm in the neck is constant hence the term "dys" or abnormal "tonia" tone. The cause of the painful muscle contraction tends to be linked with injuries of the head, shoulders and neck but the exact cause remains unknown. The painful spasm may cause one to be forced into abnormal head positions and or for ones head to tilt in an unusual way.
Back Pain
A 2001 study found that 60 percent of patients with chronic back pain who received Botox® injections had pain relief for three to four months; however, a Cochrane review of several studies of Botox® for lower back pain and sciatica says there isn't enough evidence that the drug works better than placebo, acupuncture, or standard treatments like steroids for these conditions. Botox® is not FDA-approved for treating back pain.
Nerve Pain
Otherwise known as neuropathy, this type of pain that affects the hands feet, and legs is common in diabetes. A study published in the journal Neurology found that 44 percent of patients with nerve pain found relief after Botox® was injected into skin at the top of the foot. Botox® is not FDA approved for treating neuropathy.
What results can a patient expect and how soon will the effects begin?
Botox begins working within 3 days to 2 weeks after administration, and the results usually last three to four months or longer. Some patients have noted up to six months of relief. Patients who have had successful treatment then participate in physical therapy to help stretch and strengthen the muscles that have contributed to the problem. Unlike muscle spasticity that result from brain or spinal cord injury, which is permanent, muscle spasm that is triggered by injury or trauma can repair after a few treatments with BOTOX®.
