Health-Related Quality of Life Outcomes from Botulinum Toxin Treatment in Spasticity

Post-stroke spasticity: follow-up and functional implications of chronic long-term treatment with botulinum toxin

BACKGROUND

Around 40% of stroke survivor develop spasticity. Plantar flexors (PF) muscles are often affected, with severe functional impairment. The treatment of choice is botulinum toxin type A (BoNT-A) combined with adjuvant treatments. The temporary pharmacological effect implies periodic reassessment and reinjection. These long-term chronic programs require monitoring the functional impact of each cycle and the clinical evolution in relation to aging and repeated interventions.

AIM

Evaluating changes of functional level in patients with post-stroke spasticity treated with BoNT-A by assessing the long-term maintenance of the therapeutic efficacy.

DESIGN

Retrospective longitudinal observational study.

SETTING

Outpatients.

POPULATION

Chronic stroke survivors undergoing BoNT-A treatment and subsequent intensive rehabilitation (10 sessions in a day-hospital regime).

METHODS

Medical records of the enrolled patients were consulted. The primary endpoint was the change in PF spasticity by at least 1 point on the Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS) at each cycle. Secondary endpoints were the assessment of possible trends in gait parameters (Six Minute Walking Test [6MWT]; Timed Up and Go [TUG], and 10 Meters Walking Test [10mWT]) pre- and post-injection and at each cycle.

RESULTS

Thirty-six patients were enrolled. A reduction of at least one MAS point for PF was recorded after each cycle in all subjects. A time-dependent reduction in the proportion of patients reporting an improvement higher than the minimal clinically important difference (MCID) in 6MWT and 10mWT was observed. In the case of TUG, this data kept stable at all cycles. A one-point increase in the basal functional ambulation classification (FAC) score resulted in a reduction in the probability of having a TUG improvement greater than the MCID. The opposite correlation was found for 6MWT and 10mWT.

CONCLUSIONS

With the proposed treatment, the clinical significance TUG improvement remains constant throughout repeated cycles and the proportion of patients with improvement in 6MWT and 10mWT tends to decline over time. The predictive value of basal FAC on the functional variables expected improvement may provide a potential treatment targeting tool.

CLINICAL REHABILITATION IMPACT

These results may deliver prognostic indication allowing an optimized integration of different post-BoNT-A rehabilitation approaches, agreeing with current evidence. Adequate monitoring and treatment protocols are crucial for the stability of functional level and may prevent excessive fluctuations.

Clinical Conditions Targeted by OnabotulinumtoxinA in Different Ways in Medicine

OnabotulinumtoxinA (BT-A) is used in different medical fields for its beneficial effects. BT-A, a toxin originally produced by the bacterium Clostridium botulinum, is widely known for its ability to temporarily paralyze muscles by blocking the release of acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter involved in muscle contraction. The literature continually reports new hypotheses regarding potential applications that do not consider blockade of acetylcholine release at the neuromuscular junction as a common pathway. In this opinion article, it is our aim to investigate the different pathway targets of BT-A in different medical applications. First of all, the acetylcholine effect of BT-A is used to reduce wrinkles for cosmetic purposes, in the treatment of urological problems, excessive sweating, temporomandibular joint disorders, obesity, migraine, spasticity in neurological diseases, and in various cases of muscle overactivity such as cervical dystonia, blepharospasm, and essential head tremor. In another potential pathway, glutamate A, CGRP, and substance P are targeted for pain inhibition with BT-A application in conditions such as migraine, trigeminal neuralgia, neuropathic pain, and myofascial pain syndrome. On the other hand, as a mechanism different from acetylcholine and pain mediators, BT-A is used in the treatment of hair loss by increasing oxygenation and targeting transforming growth factor-beta 1 cells. In addition, the effect of BT-A on the apoptosis of cancer cells is also known and is being developed. The benefits of BT-A applied in different doses to different regions for different medical purposes are shown in literature studies, and it is also emphasized in those studies that repeating the applications increases the benefits in the long term. The use of BT-A continues to expand as researchers discover new potential therapeutic uses for this versatile toxin.

Health-Related Quality of Life in Romanian Patients with Dystonia: An Exploratory Study

Background/Objectives: Dystonia is a neurological movement disorder characterized by involuntary muscle contractions that lead to abnormal movements and postures; it has a major impact on patients' health-related quality of life (HRQoL). The aim of this study was to examine the HRQoL of Romanian patients with dystonia using the EQ-5D-5L instrument. Methods: Responses to the EQ-5D-5L and the visual analogue scale (VAS) were collected alongside demographic and clinical characteristics. Health profiles were analyzed via the metrics of the EQ-5D-5L, severity levels, and age groups. Using Shannon's indexes, we calculated informativity both for patients' health profile as a whole and each individual dimension. Level sum scores (LSS) of the EQ-5D-5L were calculated and compared with scores from the EQ-5D-5L index and VAS. The HRQoL measures were analyzed through demographic and clinical characteristics. Descriptive statistics, Spearman correlation, and non-parametric tests (Mann-Whitney U or Kruskall-Wallis H) were used. The level of agreement between HRQoL measures was assessed using their intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) and Bland-Altman plots. Results: A sample of 90 patients was used, around 75.6% of whom were female patients, and the mean age at the beginning of the survey was 58.7 years. The proportion of patients reporting "no problems" in all five dimensions was 10%. The highest frequency reported was "no problems" in self-care (66%), followed by "no problems" in mobility (41%). Shannon index and Shannon evenness index values showed higher informativity for pain/discomfort (2.07 and 0.89, respectively) and minimal informativity for self-care (1.59 and 0.68, respectively). The mean EQ-5D-5L index, LSS, and VAS scores were 0.74 (SD = 0.26), 0.70 (SD = 0.24), and 0.61 (SD = 0.21), respectively. The Spearman correlations between HRQoL measures were higher than 0.60. The agreement between the EQ-5D-5L index and LSS values was excellent (ICC = 0.970, 95% CI = 0.934-0.984); the agreement was poor-to-good between the EQ-5D-5L index and VAS scores (ICC = 683, 95% CI = 0.388-0.820), and moderate-to-good between the LSS and VAS scores (ICC = 0.789, 95% CI = 0.593-0.862). Conclusions: Our results support the utilization of the EQ-5D-5L instrument in assessing the HRQoL of dystonia patients, and empirical results suggest that the EQ-5D-5L index and LSS measure may be used interchangeably. The findings from this study highlight that HRQoL is complex in patients with dystonia, particularly across different age groups.

Botulinum neurotoxin: A therapeutic powerhouse with broad clinical implications

ABSTRACT

Clostridium botulinum is a Gram-positive bacterium that produces one of the most deadly chemodenervating toxins in the world. To date, six distinct neurotoxins are available for prescription use in the United States. Decades of data across aesthetic therapeutic areas and therapeutic disease states support the safety and efficacy of C. botulinum, providing good symptom management and improved quality of life in appropriately chosen patients. Unfortunately, many clinicians are slow to progress patients to toxin therapy from more conservative measures, and others wrongly interchange the products despite characteristics unique to each. Commensurate with an improved understanding of the complex pharmacology and clinical implications of botulinum neurotoxins is the importance for clinicians to appropriately identify, educate, refer, and/or treat candidate patients. This article provides an overview of the history, mechanism of action, differentiation, indications, and uses for botulinum neurotoxins.

Clinical efficacy of botulinum toxin type A in patients with traumatic brain injury, spinal cord injury, or multiple sclerosis: An observational longitudinal study

Botulinum toxin type A (BoNT-A) is the treatment of choice for focal spasticity, with a concomitant effect on pain reduction and improvement of quality of life (QoL). Current evidence of its efficacy is based mainly on post stroke spasticity. This study aims to clarify the role of BoNT-A in the context of non-stroke spasticity (NSS). We enrolled 86 patients affected by multiple sclerosis, spinal cord injury, and traumatic brain injury with clinical indication to perform BoNT-A treatment. Subjects were evaluated before injection and after 1, 3, and 6 months. At every visit, spasticity severity using the modified Ashworth scale, pain using the numeric rating scale, QoL using the Euro Qol Group EQ-5D-5L, and the perceived treatment effect using the Global Assessment of Efficacy scale were recorded. In our population BoNT-A demonstrated to have a significant effect in improving all the outcome variables, with different effect persistence over time in relation to the diagnosis and the number of treated sites. Our results support BoNT-A as a modifier of the disability condition and suggest its implementation in the treatment of NSS, delivering a possible starting point to generate diagnosis-specific follow-up programs.

Clinical trial identifier

NCT04673240.

An Observational Cross-Sectional Study of Gender and Disability as Determinants of Person-Centered Medicine in Botulinum Neurotoxin Treatment of Upper Motoneuron Syndrome

The motor behaviour of patients with Upper Motor Neuron Syndrome (UMNS) is characterised by spasticity. The first-line treatment for this clinical condition is Botulinum neurotoxin A (BoNTA), but the number and key locations of muscles which need to be treated is not much discussed in the literature. Cross-sectional analysis of outpatient cohort with UMNS spasticity, who were potential candidates for BoNTA treatment, was performed. Between November 2020 and November 2021, all consecutive adult patients eligible for BoNTA treatment were enrolled. The inclusion criteria encompass UMNS spasticity (onset being ≥6 months), with disabling muscles hypertonia. Patients underwent a clinical evaluation, a comprehensive assessment with the Modified Ashworth Scale, with the Modified Rankin Scale, and a patients’ perception-centred questionnaire. In total, 68 participants were enrolled in the study, among them 40 (58.8%) were male; mean age 57.9 ± 15.1. In women, BoNTA was more frequently required for adductor group muscles, independently from potential confounders (OR = 7.03, 95%CI: 1.90–25.97). According to the pattern of disability, patients with hemiparesis more frequently need to be treated in the upper limb, whereas the diplegia/double-hemiparesis group needed to be treated more frequently at the adductor and crux muscles compared to their counterparts. UMNS spasticity in women could require more attention to be paid to the treatment of adductor muscle spasticity, potentially because the dysfunction of those muscles could influence sphincteric management, required for perineal hygiene and/or sexual life.