HSC Brief: UNM neurologists study patterns of medication use for dystonia sufferers

By Matthew Reisen
February 8, 2017

According to a UNM Health Sciences Center press release, a new study led by Sarah Pirio Richardson, a movement disorders specialist and assistant professor in UNM’s Department of Neurology, finds a surprising number of movement disorder sufferers don’t receive any treatment, while those who do don’t follow a consistent treatment regimen.

People who suffer from movement disorders, called dystonias, experience painful involuntary muscle contractions that can seriously disrupt their lives, according to the press release. 

According to the release, in a paper published in the journal "Neurology," Pirio Richardson, who also heads UNM’s Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorders Program, found that almost three-quarters of dystonia patients were on some form of medication.

“It started with a very simple question – what do people actually take for the treatment of dystonia?” Pirio Richardson is quoted as saying in the press release. “We actually didn’t know that.”

Most of the patients surveyed were using botulinum toxin, or Botox, an injectable drug which temporarily paralyzes muscles while alleviating many dystonia symptoms for a few months at a time, according to the press release. Additional medications used by patients included muscle relaxants, benzodiazapines, antipsychotics and drugs typically used to treat Parkinson’s.

“Significantly, up to 25 percent were not using medications at all,” Pirio Richardson is quoted as saying in the press release. “That’s a huge number.”

According to the press release, there were also a noticeable geographical difference in how medications were prescribed, finding that fewer patients in the northeastern U.S. were using medications. The reasoning for that remains a mystery.

Pirio Richardson and her collaborators are members of the Dystonia Coalition, an international group of researchers focused on a better understanding and finding new treatments for this debilitating neurological condition, one which can take many forms, according to the press release. 

For example, in some cases, muscles around the eyes are affected, causing rapid, uncontrollable blinking, while cervical dystonia cause the head to twist to one side. Other parts of the body may be affected as well. 

According to the press release, researchers examined records of 2,026 people at 37 sites in the U.S., Canada, Europe and Australia. In the project, patient’s supply information about their health history, provide a blood sample and consent to be videotaped, to capture the nature and severity of their dystonia symptoms. 

“It’s the largest study of dystonia patients in the world,” Pirio Richardson is quoted as saying in the press release, calling the study a “snapshot” of current medication use. 

According to the press release, the next step is to study how patients use medication over time. Eventually, the research will assist in guiding the development of best practices in managing dystonia treatment.

http://www.dailylobo.com/article/2017/02/neurologists-study