Abstract
Adverse effects of different preparations of Botulinus Toxin were studied. 97 episodes of injections in 67 children with cerebral palsy carried out between 1994 and 2001 were available for study. A telephonic interview was carried out according to a format in which the nature of adverse effects and the onset and duration of beneficial effect were recorded. 52 children had diplegia, 27 had hemiplegia and 18 had quadriplegia. 69 injections were made using Botox and remainder were made using Dysport. The dose for botox was up to 12 units per kilogram body weight and for dysport up to 40 units per kilogram body weight. The average age at injection was 94 months. The diagnoses were evenly distributed between the groups. A total of 72 adverse effects were noted in 44 episodes. Botox group accounted for 35 episodes and dysport for 9 (p=0.23). Thirty-three children had at least one adverse effect. Botox group accounting for 23 and Dysport group for 10 (p=0.45). The commonest adverse effect was pain at the injection site. The student t test was carried out to test statistical significance. There were no significant differences in the occurrence of adverse effects or the onset and duration of beneficial effect.
It may be concluded that botulinum therapy for cerebral palsy provided a high degree of patient/carer satisfaction. It produced few adverse effects and is generally well tolerated. The effects of botox and dysport were comparable.
Local Host: British Society for Children’s Orthopaedic Surgery. Conference Theme: Congenital Deficiencies of the Lower Limb. These abstracts were prepared by A.Catterall.
