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1179332 tn?1297478990

Botox for Muscle Spasms?

Hi

I will be going in for an assessment at the end of this month so that I can start a rehabilitation program to hopefully correct my gait and to help with the pain (I am 8 months post op). I have permanent muscle spasm of my neck and shoulders which causes pain down my arm along with weakness. It has been brought up that having botox injected to those areas may be something for me to consider. I am feeling a little squeamish about it though... I thought I'd get everyone's experiences or opinions before it actually comes to that point where I will need to decided.

I'd love to hear it all, the good, bad and the ugly!!

Thanks
Carolyn
8 Responses
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Avatar universal
Your gait sound almost identical to mine the only difference being my right side is much weaker than my left, but both are overall weak. Thankfully it is getting better and is much better than before surgery. I was also very stubborn originally to use any assistive devices but got over it when they would not discharge me until i promised to be safe! I hope that you find something that will help relieve your symptoms!
Helpful - 0
1179332 tn?1297478990
Hello

Pre op my gait was a combination of balance issues, spasicity (as soon as I would try and walk my whole leg would seize up), but then I had loose popping out joints too. I am pretty sure that if I was left much longer, I would have been in a wheelchair as I could only walk about 5 steps at a time.
Post op, the spasicity got a lot better, but I still have weakness in my legs especially in my hips which causes me to have to throw my legs and walk with a wide stance. I don't use any assistive devices mainly b/c I am stubborn but I found out today that the accommodations that my body has made to make me able to walk, may have really damaged me and I may need to walk with a cane to help correct that. My body has sort of shifted over to the left because of my left side weakness. I was supposed to have a gait assessment today but it got postponed to the end of Oct. so I won't know exactly what they want to do till then.

As for the botox, because I was looking at it for my neck and shoulders which are permanently seized...my Dr said if she did any botox it would be a really tiny bit. They are concerned that the seizing may be happening b/c I don't have the strength I need  to keep my head and shoulders up. So she doesn't want to do anything that will make me weaker...it is sort of unchartered territory b/c they don't know the cause behind the problem yet. So..I am going to wait on it for now and try some other things first.

I hope that you are seeing some improvements, I am so sorry about the rough time you have had since surgery!
Carolyn
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Hi Carolyn,

I have hod botox on my left leg/ankle to help with a muscle spasm that never releases is is known as hypertonia, or dystonia, part of my rehabilitation to start walking again. I would have to say that it helped me greatly. The downside is I have to do it every six weeks, the upside it has relieved the pain because my ankle is no longer permanently contorted. The needles they use are very small, I have reduced feeling in my legs so I can't really vogue for if it is painful or not. May I ask what is wrong with your gait? Are you able to walk with out assitive edvices, with assitive devices, or in w wheel chair? I have gait problems also and just wanted to see if they were at all similar.
Helpful - 0
1179332 tn?1297478990
Thanks everyone!! My appt is tomorrow so I guess I will find out if they think that is the right route or not!! I am quite excited about it b/c this is the first time that someone is actually going to look at the way I walk and try to figure out why!!! I really hope that I come out of this with something to send me in the right direction, as far as recover goes!

Fingers crossed...

Carolyn
Helpful - 0
1268921 tn?1288919056
My mom(and OR nurse) and I were just talking about botox injections to help the non-stop eye twitches I have been getting.  She's had it done and had had good relief from it.  I'm a bit sqeamish to have an injection into my eyelid, but other than that, I have no qualms about doing it!!
Helpful - 0
1457139 tn?1285494313
I also got botox in my throat area. Botox wears of in about 3 months. In my case however, it was complicated. My vocal cords were pulling together all the time and it became progressively more difficult to compensate and keep my airway open.
There are many muscles in the larynx and upper airway. It seemed to wear off very quickly, but actually, when one muscle was paralyzed another took over. It was like playing whack-a-mole! Now I have a tracheotomy tube to sleep better.

I have no idea though if that could happen with shoulder and neck muscles, I encourage you to try.
Injecting right into the larynx is a little scary and uncomfortable, but in normal skeletal muscles I see no problem. The quantity they inject is very minute, so they use a tiny syringe with a very thin needle. It goes in and out in a second or two. I am sure it wont hurt!
Helpful - 0
620923 tn?1452915648
COMMUNITY LEADER
Hey Carolyn...u trying to make ur brain look younger????

J/K...lol.....I do know the use of botox to calm muscles can work....a former boss of mine was getting injections in her throat after an over exposure to carbon dioxide....her throat gets tight to the point it affects her speech.

The Botox has helped...it doesn't last and does need to be done many times on a monthly basis.

"selma"
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Hey,
Botox can be very very helpful with getting specific muscles to quiet down and relax.
People often get great results and signifant pain redux
good luck
Susan122
Helpful - 0
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