Well I can honestly say that I never thought I'd see the day that I'd be telling you about my 5 year old possibly getting botox. I should have learned by now that you should never say never! Botox, while commonly associated with a cosmetic treatment to make women look younger, can actually be benefical to people with cerebral palsy. A couple of months ago our PT approached me about Oksana being considered for botox. Her hamstrings are rather tight and just stretching her wasn't getting the range of motion we were hoping for.
If you are wondering how botox works, you aren't alone. I did some research and found out that the bacterium from the injection blocks the transmission of nerve impulses to the muscles causing them to relax. It only lasts about 3-6 months before you have to go back for another injection, but I've talked to a number of parents who have seen great improvement in their child with botox.
So.....on March 16th Oksana will go to the spasticity clinic at Arkansas Children's Hospital to be evaluated. They will do all kinds of stuff that I'll have to explain when I actually get to see it, to determine if she is a candidate for botox and if so which muscles would benefit the most from it. I'm anxious just for the evaluation to see if we can learn anything new about her. I'll be sure to post more after the appointment.
3 comments:
Erin,
Please be sure that they help her with the pain of the injections. It is not easy on them. My son won't even get on an exam table years after this was done because they were so traumatic. Don't get me wrong, it helped him to break the habit of walking on his toes, and my daughter receives them as well (traumatic brain injury, total care). But the pain is not insignificant either.
Pat in St. Peters
I had a student in my class have botox therapy done on his legs (age 6), and it worked great for him. His mom said it didnt last as long as they had hoped, but the results were great apart from that.
I pray it will work well for Oksana as well. Best wishes.
It worked great with Nina, but it is not along term solution for her as you already know.
As for the pain, yes, it is painful, but we talked to Nina about it and prepared her for that. Unfortunately, our girls had a lot of medical stuff done harshly, and while the poke will hurt, Nina was all smiles as soon as they handed her the chocolate afterwards :)
That to say, hopefully this will not make Oksana associate it with her last surgery, but rather be thankful when she ralizes after the poke, that was that!
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