Treatment of sialorrhoea with ultrasound guided botulinum toxin type A injection in patients with neurological disorders.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the safety and efficacy of ultrasound guided botulinum toxin type A (BTX-A) injections into salivary glands for the treatment of sialorrhoea in patients with neurological disorders.


METHODS
The parotid and submandibular glands of 10 patients were injected with BTX-A using ultrasound guidance. Before injection, the baseline rate of salivation was assessed using a visual analogue scale. Postinjection, assessments were repeated at regular intervals for up to 1 year.


RESULTS
Of the 10 patients treated, nine (90%) reported a subjective reduction in salivation post-treatment and one patient (10%) found no improvement. Visual analogue scale scores showed a reduction of 55% in the mean rate of salivation for all patients and a reduction of 60.8% for the group of responders. No serious adverse events occurred and no procedure related complications were reported.


CONCLUSIONS
This is the first study to report (1) the injection of BTX-A (BOTOX) into both parotid and submandibular glands, and (2) the use of ultrasound guidance during the administration of BTX-A into salivary glands. The results suggest that the technique is safe and that BTX-A injections are effective for the treatment of sialorrhoea in patients with neurological disorders.
Department of Neurology, Pain Centre, Policlinico San Marco, Corso Europa 7 24040 Zingonia-Bergamo, Italy.
M
M
Porta
M
M
Gamba
G
G
Bertacchi
P
P
Vaj
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D019274:Botulinum Toxins, Type A / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D009422:Nervous System Diseases / Q000150:complications*; D012798:Sialorrhea / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy*; D018084:Ultrasonography, Interventional
D019274:Botulinum Toxins, Type A