Clinical neuropharmacology
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Clin Neuropharmacol · Sep 2013
Randomized Controlled TrialAcute treatment of trigeminal neuralgia with onabotulinum toxin A.
A double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled study of patients with essential trigeminal neuralgia and treatment with a single injection of onabotulinum toxin A (BTX) was carried out. The efficacy, safety, and tolerability of either 1 mL 0.9% saline plus 50 U of BTX or only 1 mL of 0.9% saline injected subcutaneously in the affected area were evaluated. Cases with involvement of the third branch of the trigeminal nerve also received intramuscularly either 10 U of BTX or matching placebo in the masseter muscle, ipsilateral to the pain location. ⋯ Two months after the intervention, a trend to statistical significance was observed for the VAS mean values in subjects treated with BTX and those who received placebo (VAS 4.9 vs 6.63, t test, P = 0.07). Three months after the injection, significant differences were observed in the average VAS score for subjects treated with BTX and those treated with placebo (VAS 4.75 vs 6.94, respectively; t test, P = 0.01). Onabotulinum toxin A was well tolerated and seems to be a safe and useful therapy for patients with essential trigeminal neuralgia.