What is Spasticity?

Spasticity is unusual muscle tightness caused by muscles staying contracted for a long time. It happens because of damage to the brain, spinal cord, or nerves that control movement, and is found in people with neurological conditions like:

• Cerebral palsy (CP)
• Multiple sclerosis (MS)
• Stroke
• Traumatic brain or spinal cord injury

Spasticity can affect muscles anywhere in the body but is most often seen in the legs. Symptoms differ from person to person and can be painful, cause changes in appearance, and make movement hard.

What does spasticity feel like?

Spasticity feels different for each person. For some, it is a slight tightness. For others, it causes painful stiffness and uncontrollable shaking.

Here are some common signs of spasticity:

• Extra stiff muscles: The muscles feel heavy and hard to move.
• Muscle spasms: Muscles suddenly cramp or twitch on their own, sometimes over and over again.
• Clonus: This is a rapid, shaking movement that feels like a tremor. It happens most often in the ankles.
• Scissoring legs: Your legs might cross over each other like scissors without you meaning to do it.
• Pain: The constant tightness can cause deep aches or sharp pains.
• Awkward posture: The stiffness can pull your body into uncomfortable positions.
• Frozen joints (contractures): If a muscle stays tight for a long time, it can get stuck permanently. This means the joint stays bent and cannot be straightened.
• Trouble with daily tasks: It can get hard to do basic things like getting dressed, eating, or bathing. It can also make it hard for a caregiver to help you.
• Bad sleep: Painful muscle cramps can wake you up throughout the night.

What is the difference between spasticity and rigidity?

Both of these conditions make your muscles feel incredibly stiff, but they come from different problems in the brain and act differently.

• Rigidity: This is usually associated with diseases such as Parkinson's disease, which affect a specific deep brain region that coordinates movement. When you have rigidity, the muscle stiffness stays exactly the same no matter how fast or slow you try to move the joint. It affects all the muscles around that joint equally.
• Spasticity: This happens from general damage to the pathways that control movement in your brain or spinal cord. With spasticity, speed matters. If you try to move your arm or leg quickly, the muscle will suddenly catch and resist you even harder than if you moved it slowly.

What causes spasticity?

Spasticity happens when the nerve pathways in your brain or spinal cord are damaged. These pathways work like electrical wires, controlling how your muscles move and stretch. When they are damaged, the muscles do not get the signal to relax.

Many different medical conditions can cause this nerve damage, including:

• Stroke
• Cerebral palsy
• Multiple Sclerosis (MS)
• Spinal cord injuries
• Brain or head injuries
• ALS (also known as Lou Gehrig's disease)
• Genetic conditions are passed down through families, like hereditary spastic paraplegia.
• Rare metabolic disorders like phenylketonuria, Krabbe disease, or adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD)

What are the complications if spasticity is left untreated?

When spasticity is severe and not treated, it can cause serious problems over time. Because it makes moving very difficult, it can keep your skin from staying clean and dry. This can lead to painful bedsores that can become infected and cause a dangerous blood infection called sepsis.

If moderate or severe spasticity is left alone, it can also lead to:

• Joints that are completely frozen in place
• Broken bones
• Joints that pop out of place completely or partially (dislocation)
• Urinary tract infections (UTIs)
• Severe, long-term constipation

What is the treatment for spasticity?

There is no cure for spasticity, but there are many ways to control it. The main goal is to reduce your pain, help you move better, and make daily life easier.

Because spasticity affects your body in different ways, you will usually work with a team of doctors and specialists. Your team might include a neurologist (brain doctor), a physiatrist (rehabilitation doctor), physical and occupational therapists, a speech therapist, and sometimes a surgeon.

Most people use a combination of different treatments at the same time.

What are the non-surgical treatments?

Most doctors will start with treatments that do not require surgery. These include therapy, tools, and daily medications.

Physical Therapy

A physical therapist will help you focus on your legs and lower body. They will teach you specific stretching and strengthening exercises. They also work with you on mobility, including standing, walking, and safely transferring from a bed to a chair.

Occupational Therapy

An occupational therapist focuses more on your arms and upper body. They help you stretch and strengthen your hands and arms so you can do everyday tasks like brushing your teeth, cooking, and taking a bath.

Speech Therapy

If the spasticity affects the muscles in your face, mouth, or throat, a speech therapist can help. They give you exercises to improve your speech, help you communicate better, and make swallowing safer.

Braces and Casts

Wearing a special brace or cast can hold your arm or leg in a position that gives the tight muscle a long, steady stretch. This helps keep your joints flexible and makes it easier to use your limbs.

Assistive Devices

There are many tools designed to help you get around safely. This includes things like canes, walkers, wheelchairs, or special tools that help you reach and grab items without straining.

What medications are used for spasticity?

If your stiffness is keeping you from sleeping or doing your daily chores, a doctor might prescribe pills. These medications are almost always used alongside your physical or occupational therapy.

Some of the most common pills include:

• Baclofen
• Tizanidine
• Dantrolene sodium
• Valium (diazepam)
• Clonazepam
• Gabapentin

While these pills can be very helpful, they do affect your whole body. Because of this, the most common side effects are feeling very tired, drowsy, or physically weak.

How does Botox help spasticity?

If you only have stiffness in a few specific muscles, your doctor might suggest a local injection of botulinum toxin (commonly known as Botox) or a medicine called phenol.

Instead of taking a pill that travels throughout your body, the doctor injects the medicine directly into the tight muscle. The medicine blocks the mixed-up nerve signals and forces that specific muscle to relax.

• How long it takes: You will usually start to notice the muscle relaxing about 7 to 10 days after the shot.
• How long it lasts: The effects usually last for about 3 months. After that, you will need another injection.
• The benefit: Because it targets only the trouble spots, it can make sitting, standing, or wearing a brace much more comfortable without making your whole body feel sleepy.

When is surgery needed?

If your spasticity is severe and other treatments are not working, a doctor might recommend surgery. There are three main types of surgeries used for this condition:

Baclofen Pump (ITB Therapy)

Instead of taking baclofen pills that make you drowsy, a surgeon can place a small pump under the skin of your belly. A tiny tube connects the pump directly to the fluid around your spinal cord. The pump automatically delivers a steady, tiny dose of medicine exactly where it is needed. This relieves pain and stiffness much better than pills, with far less drowsiness.

Selective Dorsal Rhizotomy (SDR)

This surgery is usually done for people who have severe spasticity in their legs, and it is very common for children with cerebral palsy. A neurosurgeon carefully cuts specific tiny nerve roots in the spine that are sending too many electrical signals to the legs. Cutting these bad nerve lines rebalances the system, which reduces muscle stiffness while keeping your other senses intact.

Orthopedic Surgery

This surgery fixes the damage that long-term stiffness has already caused to your bones and tissues. For example, if a muscle has shrunk and frozen a joint in place, a surgeon can lengthen the tendon to help the joint straighten out again.

When should I call a doctor?

You should reach out to a doctor right away if:

• You notice muscle stiffness and spasms for the very first time and do not know why. This can be an early warning sign of a serious injury to your brain or spinal cord.
• You have already been diagnosed with spasticity, but your tightness is suddenly getting much worse.
• Your spasms are happening more frequently than usual.
• The stiffness is starting to stop you from doing normal, daily tasks or is causing you new pain.

Why choose Tender Palm Super-Speciality Hospital for Spasticity Treatment in Lucknow, India?

Tender Palm Super-Speciality Hospital offers advanced Spasticity treatment in Lucknow, India, at an affordable cost. We have a team of experienced neurologists and rehabilitation specialists who provide accurate diagnosis and both non-pharmacological and pharmacological treatment options including botulinum toxin therapy, intrathecal baclofen management, and comprehensive physiotherapy-based rehabilitation procedures. Our Neurology and Rehabilitation Care team has decades of experience in successfully treating Spasticity in Lucknow, India.

To seek an Expert Consultation for Spasticity Treatment in Lucknow, India:

Call us at +91-9076972161
Email at care@tenderpalm.com

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