June 18, 2012
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Botulinum toxin A shows benefit in maintaining ocular alignment over long term

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Surgery is often the most appropriate treatment for long-term management of adult strabismus patients, but a study has shown that repeated injections of botulinum toxin A improve quality of life and provide for good long-term ocular alignment.

The study consisted of 65 patients with a mean age of 52 years who had more than 25 injections of botulinum toxin A for long-term deviation control. The researchers assessed quality of life by reviewing results of the Adult Strabismus questionnaire (AS-20); 46 questionnaires were returned and available for analysis.

The mean psychosocial score for all patients was 71.1 ± 28.9 out of 100 and functional score was 71.9 ± 27.6. The mean overall quality of life score was 72. Additionally, five patients scored below 15 on one or both subscales.

“The mean AS-20 score in our patients compared favorably with that reported for normal controls and was much higher than that reported for patients with strabismus,” the researchers said.

Based on these results, they suggested that if surgery is not indicated, injections with botulinum toxin A over the long term may maintain ocular alignment.