Overcoming Muscle Stiffness: Modern Interventions for Managing Chronic Spasticity

At Comprehensive Pain Management Partners, patients with chronic muscle spasticity find solutions that fit their needs and medical conditions. Pain management physicians Eric Haynes, MD, and Rudy Panganiban, MD, lead a team of expert providers offering unique solutions for chronic spasticity in offices in Tampa, Venice, Dade City, and New Port Richey, Florida.

This month our blog discusses how chronic muscle spasticity happens and how modern pain management interventions can help.

Why chronic muscle spasticity happens

Spasticity develops when damage to the brain or spinal cord disrupts the signals that control muscle movement. Instead of relaxing normally, affected muscles may stay in a contracted (tightened and stiff) position, or in some cases, contract involuntarily with no warning.

Chronic spasticity is linked to neurological problems such as stroke, multiple sclerosis (MS), cerebral palsy, spinal cord injuries, and brain injuries. In fact, up to 43% of stroke survivors experience spasticity within the first year after a stroke.

Spasticity can range from mild tightness to painful spasms that prevent normal movement and disrupt daily life. Some people with severe spasticity struggle to walk, maintain posture, or move their limbs normally.

Without effective management, severe spasticity can lead to more complicated, long-term problems including reduced mobility and damaging changes in muscles and joints. That’s why it’s so important to discuss ongoing spasticity symptoms with experts rather than simply trying to live with them.

Treatment to target spasticity from several directions

There is no one-size-fits-all spasticity treatment. Your treatment may combine therapies that improve movement with treatments that directly reduce excessive muscle contractions.

Physical and occupational therapy can help preserve mobility, flexibility, and function. Braces, assistive devices, and medications may also play a role depending on which muscles are affected and how much spasticity interferes with your life.

For more targeted treatment, Botox® injections can temporarily reduce excessive activity in specific muscles. By helping those muscles relax, treatment may decrease tightness and spasms while improving comfort and function.

People with more widespread or severe spasticity may benefit from an implanted pain pump that delivers medication directly around the spinal cord. Surgery may also be considered in certain severe cases.

Taking the first step

Finding the right approach starts with understanding the root cause of your symptoms and how they affect your life. At Comprehensive Pain Management Partners, our specialists start with a comprehensive physical exam along with imaging, nerve testing, or other diagnostic tests when appropriate.

Your doctor will then create a unique treatment plan that can address multiple concerns and help maximize your mobility, muscle function, independence, and quality of life.

If chronic muscle tightness or spasms are limiting what you can do, you may have more treatment options than you realize. Call our nearest office or schedule an appointment online today to find out how we can help.