Written by Rebecca Budde, SIU School of Medicine
After some amazingly mild days in December, the winter weather has really set in – it’s COLD outside! For some, the cold means the welcome possibility of a dusting of snow on the lawn; for others, the cold can exacerbate an already painful incurable condition.
Raynaud’s Syndrome is a disorder that can affect the blood vessels in the fingers, toes, ears and nose. This disorder is characterized by episodic attacks that cause ischemia (constricted blood vessels) and pain in the areas affected. “For those with Raynaud’s Syndrome, in the hands, the limited blood flow can cause the fingers to turn cold, white and/or blue and be very painful, possibly even cause sores or ulcers to form,” according to plastic surgeon Dr. Michael W. Neumeister.
In January 2004, Dr. Neumeister injected his first patient suffering from Raynauds with BOTOX^® in an attempt to help his pain. “His fingers were white with no blood supply and he had some ulcers and exposed bone,” Dr. Neumeister says. “The first time he came to me, he said, ‘Doc, cut my fingers off!’ This man had been admitted to the hospital, had intravenous morphine and even surgeries to attempt to cure the pain in his hands.” The BOTOX^® worked.
Since that first injection, BOTOX^® has started to become a more widely known option. The FDA has not given on-label approval for using BOTOX^® for Raynaud’s, but Dr. Neumeister is conducting a stage 2 clinical trial to determine the effectiveness of BOTOX^® for Raynaud’s.
The side effects are minimal, and the reduction of the patient’s pain is swift. Patients may experience temporary (a couple of months) weakness in the muscles that control the spreading of the fingers. Seventy percent of patients have pain relief, according to Dr. Neumeister.
In addition to patients with Raynaud’s, Dr. Neumeister has used BOTOX^® to treat neuromas, painful scars, chronic back pain, carpal tunnel, tennis elbow, diabetic foot pain and reflex sympathetic dystrophy syndrome.
Read more about The Hidden Talents of BOTOX^®.
Read more about Raynaud’s Syndrome.
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