No products in the cart.

No products in the cart.

Botox for Cerebral Palsy: Uses, Side Effects, and Safety

botox injections help individuals with cerebral palsy achieve spasticity relief by relaxing the muscles

Botox has been used as a spasticity treatment for individuals with cerebral palsy for about 30 years. Spasticity refers to involuntary muscle contractions caused by damage to the central nervous system and it is one of the most common secondary effects of cerebral palsy.

While Botox is considered an effective treatment for spasticity, its effects are temporary. To help you understand how to promote long-term spasticity relief with Botox injections, this article will discuss:

How Botox Injections Can Help Individuals with Cerebral Palsy

Botox is a nerve blocker that blocks the release of a neurotransmitter called acetylcholine. This allows the muscles to relax, making it ideal for relieving high muscle tone caused by cerebral palsy.

Cerebral palsy is caused by damage to the developing brain before, during, or shortly after birth. Because of that damage, messages between the brain and muscles get disrupted.

To protect themselves, the muscles contract. However, because messages from the brain cannot reach the muscles, the muscles remain contracted for prolonged periods. These involuntary muscle contractions are referred to as spasticity.

Nearly 80% of individuals with cerebral palsy experience spasticity. Because cerebral palsy is a developmental disability, poorly managed spasticity can cause disproportional growth, chronic pain, and the development of an abnormal gait (walking pattern).

While the brain damage that caused cerebral palsy will not worsen, spasticity can. Therefore, early intervention is essential for preventing the progression of spasticity. One of the most effective ways to do this is to inject Botox into the muscles.

Up next, we’ll discuss how to maximize the effects of Botox for long-term spasticity relief.

How to Promote Long-Term Spasticity Relief with Botox

child with cerebral palsy using botox injections and participating in physical therapy

Cerebral palsy is a life-long condition that needs long-term solutions. While Botox is proven effective at relieving spasticity in individuals with cerebral palsy, its effects are temporary. Generally, the effects of Botox last for 3-6 months.

Luckily, there are ways for individuals with cerebral palsy to utilize Botox injections to get lasting spasticity relief.

The most effective way to promote long-term spasticity relief is to take advantage of the reduced muscle tone provided by Botox and participate in an intensive rehabilitation program.

This will allow individuals to practice movements and activities with a less restricted range of motion. Additionally, the consistent stimulation will help promote the brain’s ability to reorganize itself: neuroplasticity. Through highly repetitive practice, individuals may activate neuroadaptive changes in the brain for long-term spasticity relief.

When movements affected by spasticity are reorganized to undamaged regions of the brain, communication between the muscles and brain will no longer be disrupted, resulting in permanent spasticity relief.

Up next, we’ll discuss whether Botox injections are safe for children with CP.

Is Botox Safe for Children with Cerebral Palsy?

Botox injections to reduce lower limb spasticity have been graded effective and safe for individuals with cerebral palsy.

This study tested Botox on children with spasticity in their legs. One group received 200 units (the recommended and max dose) of Botox per leg while the other group received 100 units.

The children in the higher dose group showed significantly greater improvements than the lower dose group. Additionally, children who were 7 years old or younger demonstrated better motor improvements than those who were over 7. This is likely because younger children have had less time to form poor habits, and their brains also have increased neuroplasticity compared with those who are older.

Therefore, this study suggests that early intervention and using the right dosage of Botox can significantly affect functional outcomes in individuals with cerebral palsy.

However, Botox may not be ideal for all children with cerebral palsy. In the following section, we’ll discuss common side effects of Botox.

Side Effects of Botox for Cerebral Palsy

Although Botox injections are generally safe, about 3-10% of people experience adverse side effects.

Likewise, individuals can develop tolerance to Botox. As a result, they may gradually require a higher dosage to receive the same amount of spasticity relief, which increases their risk of developing side effects.

Common side effects of using Botox to treat spasticity include:

  • Soreness, bruising, pain, redness, or swelling at the injection site
  • General muscle weakness
  • Headache
  • Fatigue
  • Increased sweating

To determine whether Botox injections are ideal for your child’s spasticity, consult with their pediatrician.

Botox for Cerebral Palsy: Summary

Botox is commonly used to manage spasticity in patients with cerebral palsy, but the injections alone are not enough for long-term relief.

To treat spasticity long-term, active exercise is necessary. This promotes neuroplasticity, which may help rewire functions affected by spasticity to undamaged regions of the brain.

While the effects of Botox are temporary, they create opportunities to practice moving with correct form and improve motor control.

Hopefully, this article helped you understand how Botox may help people with cerebral palsy and how to use it to get lasting results.

Keep it going: Don’t leave behind this free ebook with 19 pages of helpful tips for cerebral palsy

illustration of cerebral palsy tips ebook with example pages

Get our free 19-page PDF full of helpful tips for cerebral palsy by signing up below! If you liked this article, you’ll LOVE our free ebook.

When you sign up, you’ll also receive our popular emails that share more tips for life with cerebral palsy — you can opt out anytime.

We will never sell your email address, and we never spam. That we promise.

More Ways to Recover with Flint Rehab:

Free CP Tips Ebook

illustration of cerebral palsy tips ebook with example pages

Discover Award-Winning Neurorehab Tools

You're on a Roll: Read More Popular Articles About Cerebral Palsy

You’re Really on a Roll: Discover a Program for CP That’s Actually Fun to Do!

At Flint Rehab, we understand that doing physical therapy at home can become tedious and repetitive. But when repetition is critical to recovery, it’s important to stick with a repetitive regimen. But that doesn’t mean it has to be boring.

Flint Rehab is the leading manufacturer of motion-sensing, gamified rehabilitation devices. Our bestselling recovery tool, FitMi, transforms full-body rehab exercises into an interactive experience.

See what individuals with CP are saying about FitMi:

“The FitMi and MusicGlove have done wonders for my son with hemiparesis from cerebral palsy and stroke. It motivates him to do his exercises. It does not seem like therapy for him since it is fun. FitMi monitors his progress so it is a great reinforcement for him. Music is a motivator for him. He has been using it on his arm and we will try the leg exercises soon.”

-Manning

While FitMi is a recovery tool for the full-body, our other device, MusicGlove, helps target the hand to improve fine motor skills and dexterity.

See what others have said about MusicGlove:

“My granddaughter has right-side hemiplegia from Cerebral Palsy / stroke at birth. She states that this is a great product for anyone who has issues with the use of their hand(s), and that is has helped her tremendously. She also finds the music quite catchy (surprisingly!). Our occupational therapist has been impressed as well. I can say that it has arguably been the best tool of all our therapy resources.”

-Jenni

Together, FitMi and MusicGlove make a powerful home therapy regimen for individuals with cerebral palsy. Best of all, you can save money when you bundle them together.

To learn more, click the button below:

ebook cover with the title "Helpful tips for managing cerebral palsy"

Do you have these 19 pages of helpful tips for CP?

Get a free copy of our ebook Helpful Tips for Managing Cerebral Palsy. Click here to get instant access.