Botulinum Toxin Type A for Chronic Pain and Pelvic Floor Spasm in Women. A Randomized Controlled Trial
Jason A. Abbott PhD, FRANZCOG; Sherin K. Jarvis BAppSc(Physio); Stephen D. Lyons PhD, MRANZCOG; Angus Thomson, MRCOG; and Thierry G. Vancaille MD, FRANZCOG
Chronic pelvic pain in women causes morbidity for the sufferer and incurs high cost for health care providers. There are frequently problems with diagnosis and management of what is commonly a relapsing and debilitating health issue for women.
Although many causes of female pelvic pain are effectively treated by existing medical and surgical interventions, there remains a group of women for whom chronic pelvic pain is either undiagnosed or ineffectively treated. Pain due to muscle spasm is reported to occur in the head, back, and neck, and treatments aimed at reducing the muscle spasm are able to reduce pain. In a pilot study of women with chronic pelvic pain and demonstrable spasm in the pelvic floor muscles, we found a universal reduction in pressure when
botulinum toxin type A (BOTOX, Allergan Westport, Ireland) was injected, and many women reported diminution of pain symptoms. The aim of the current study is to report change in pelvic floor pressure, pain response, and impact on quality of life when women with chronic pelvic pain and pelvic floor muscle spasm are randomized to receive botulinum toxin type A or placebo injections to the pelvic floor muscles.
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists; Vol. 108, No. 4, October 2006. ISSN: 0029-7844/06
