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Senior Citizen Health & Medicine
Senior Citizens May Find Botox Not Only Helps
Wrinkles but Knee Pain, too
Mayo Clinic recruiting for trial to test effects on
knee arthritis
October 25, 2006 – Botox, the stuff we usually
think of as being used to smooth out wrinkles, may have a new use for
senior citizens. Painful knee arthritis is a common ailment for millions
of older people but researchers at the Mayo Clinic think that Botox may
just offer some relief. They are recruiting now for a clinical trial.
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The Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., is seeking
adults who are age 40 or older and have knee pain that has not responded
to medicines, exercise or physical therapy. The purpose of this study is
to find out what effects (good and bad) the botulinum toxin (Botox) has
on patients with knee arthritis.
Eligible participants will have been diagnosed with
knee arthritis that can be confirmed by x-ray.
Botulinum toxin has been approved by the U.S. Food
and Drug Administration (FDA) for use for other conditions, including
migraine, muscle spasm and wrinkles, but not for knee pain.
Osteoarthritis, sometimes called degenerative joint
disease or osteoarthrosis, is the most common form of arthritis.
Osteoarthritis is characterized by the breakdown of joint cartilage and
may affect any joint in your body, including those in your fingers,
hips, knees, lower back and feet. Knee arthritis typically affects
patients over 40 years of age.
"It is well known that Botox has a potent effect on
muscle, causing temporary paralysis and leading to its widespread use
for various medical and cosmetic conditions. There is now some evidence
in animal and laboratory studies that Botox affects the sensory nerve
endings that carry pain messages to the brain. Initial use in humans has
suggested Botox may be effective at treating pain related to
osteoarthritis" says Andrea Boon, M.D., a Mayo Clinic physician and lead
researcher for the study.
"As yet, this effect of Botox has not been formally
studied, but if found to be effective in this initial study in patients
with knee arthritis, this could be an excellent second line therapy for
patients who no longer respond to cortisone injections for their pain
but are not ready to have joint replacement surgery."
Qualified participants will be put in one of three
groups by chance. One group will get a knee injection with cortisone,
and the other two groups will get a knee injection with botulinum toxin
(either high dose or low dose).
For more information, or if you would like to
participate in this important research study, please call the study
hotline at (507) 266-1179.
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