OBJECT: This single-center study investigated adverse events that occurred in children and adolescent patients treated with intrathecal baclofen (ITB) therapy for spasticity and/or dystonia. METHODS: In a 14-year period, 430 consecutive patients with a mean age of 13.3 ± 5.9 years received ITB over a mean follow-up period of 8.6 ± 3.8 years (range 12 months to 14 years). Eighty-nine percent of these patients had cerebral palsy. Major complications, defined as those that required a surgical intervention, were infections, CSF leaks, and device problems related to the catheter or pump. Assessing infections, the authors compared the 2 groups of patients implanted with an ITB system by either the subcutaneous or subfascial technique. The temporal distribution of events related to the catheter was also considered. RESULTS: At least 1 complication was present in 25% of the patients: 9.3% experienced an infection, 4.9% a CSF leak, 15.1% a problem with the catheter, and 1% a problem related to the pump. Five percent of the assessed patients suffered more than 1 complication. The rate of infections was significantly lower (p < 0.001) in patients with the pump placed subfascially compared with those with the pump placed subcutaneously. A higher rate of infection was found after pump replacement compared with the first pump implantation (10.6% vs 6%, respectively). Catheter problems were the most common complication and occurred more frequently during the 1st year after the implant. CONCLUSIONS: While ITB is an effective treatment to manage spasticity of different origins, adverse events may occur and need to be managed. The surgical procedure should be meticulous and different techniques may have a diverse impact on the infection rate, which is the most critical complication. Despite the adverse events that occurred in this study, the majority of patients were satisfied with the treatment received.
OBJECT: This single-center study investigated adverse events that occurred in children and adolescent patients treated with intrathecal baclofen (ITB) therapy for spasticity and/or dystonia. METHODS: In a 14-year period, 430 consecutive patients with a mean age of 13.3 ± 5.9 years received ITB over a mean follow-up period of 8.6 ± 3.8 years (range 12 months to 14 years). Eighty-nine percent of these patients had cerebral palsy. Major complications, defined as those that required a surgical intervention, were infections, CSF leaks, and device problems related to the catheter or pump. Assessing infections, the authors compared the 2 groups of patients implanted with an ITB system by either the subcutaneous or subfascial technique. The temporal distribution of events related to the catheter was also considered. RESULTS: At least 1 complication was present in 25% of the patients: 9.3% experienced an infection, 4.9% a CSF leak, 15.1% a problem with the catheter, and 1% a problem related to the pump. Five percent of the assessed patients suffered more than 1 complication. The rate of infections was significantly lower (p < 0.001) in patients with the pump placed subfascially compared with those with the pump placed subcutaneously. A higher rate of infection was found after pump replacement compared with the first pump implantation (10.6% vs 6%, respectively). Catheter problems were the most common complication and occurred more frequently during the 1st year after the implant. CONCLUSIONS: While ITB is an effective treatment to manage spasticity of different origins, adverse events may occur and need to be managed. The surgical procedure should be meticulous and different techniques may have a diverse impact on the infection rate, which is the most critical complication. Despite the adverse events that occurred in this study, the majority of patients were satisfied with the treatment received.
Authors: Eveline Teresa Hidalgo; Cordelia Orillac; Andrew Hersh; David H Harter; William B Rizzo; Howard L Weiner Journal: J Child Neurol Date: 2016-10-06 Impact factor: 1.987
Authors: Allan R Tunkel; Rodrigo Hasbun; Adarsh Bhimraj; Karin Byers; Sheldon L Kaplan; W Michael Scheld; Diederik van de Beek; Thomas P Bleck; Hugh J L Garton; Joseph R Zunt Journal: Clin Infect Dis Date: 2017-03-15 Impact factor: 9.079
Authors: Laura A Adang; Omar Sherbini; Laura Ball; Miriam Bloom; Anil Darbari; Hernan Amartino; Donna DiVito; Florian Eichler; Maria Escolar; Sarah H Evans; Ali Fatemi; Jamie Fraser; Leslie Hollowell; Nicole Jaffe; Christopher Joseph; Mary Karpinski; Stephanie Keller; Ryan Maddock; Edna Mancilla; Bruce McClary; Jana Mertz; Kiley Morgart; Thomas Langan; Richard Leventer; Sumit Parikh; Amy Pizzino; Erin Prange; Deborah L Renaud; William Rizzo; Jay Shapiro; Dean Suhr; Teryn Suhr; Davide Tonduti; Jacque Waggoner; Amy Waldman; Nicole I Wolf; Ayelet Zerem; Joshua L Bonkowsky; Genevieve Bernard; Keith van Haren; Adeline Vanderver Journal: Mol Genet Metab Date: 2017-08-20 Impact factor: 4.797
Authors: Samiul Muquit; Amr Ammar; Luigi Nasto; Ahmad A Moussa; Hossein Mehdian; Michael H Vloeberghs Journal: Eur Spine J Date: 2015-08-20 Impact factor: 3.134