Botox is a prescription medicine approved by the FDA for neck spasms/dystonia, chronic daily migraines, and spasticity. It is an onabotulinum toxin A which is diluted in a saline solution and administered to the appropriate muscles in patients. It is covered by almost all insurance plans, and we take care of the prior authorizations. Insurance companies work with a third-party pharmacy to send the Botox medicine to us, then we administer it at the office.

Neck or cervical dystonia means abnormal rotation of neck muscles causing the head to get stuck in an uncomfortable position. The tight muscles spasm without the patient’s control. Cervical dystonia causes pain, spasms to all of the neck and trunk muscles, and severe discomfort. Chronic daily migraines means patients have migraines more than 15 days per month, each lasting longer than 4 hours per day. Spasticity means an abnormally contracted muscle group that won’t relax by command. It commonly occurs in stroke and spinal cord injury patients. It also can be seen in Parkinson’s disease, peripheral nerve injuries, and multiple sclerosis.

Botox is injected into multiple muscles which are abnormally tight, and it relaxes these muscles for up to 3 months. We dilute Botox in saline solution and inject with a very small needle. We can use local anesthetic if the patient has a lot of pain. It starts working between 3–10 days and lasts for about 3 months. Patients usually need Botox again every 3–6 months to continue its benefit. The injection may cause discomfort and pain for 3 days, so we recommend icing the area, using Advil, Aleve, or Tylenol for pain, and avoiding vigorous upper body exercises or massage for 3 days. The most common side effect is pain in the injected muscles and possible muscle weakness, which is temporary. The Botox company provides savings cards to patients with high copays.

​Please call us or visit http://www.botox.com for further information.