When to Consider Botox® Injections for Low Back Pain

Chronic low back pain plagues hundreds of thousands of Americans, but treatment options are limited without turning to surgery. However, even if pain management treatments like chiropractic manipulation don’t work, there are still plenty of alternative treatments to try, including injectables.

At Progressive Spine and Sports Medicine in Ramsey, New Jersey, our team of experienced pain medicine doctors routinely evaluate patients with low back pain and provide nonsurgical treatment options when possible, including Botox® injections.

The challenges of chronic low back pain

There is a point to pain; it tells you when something is wrong. Pain informs your brain that you’re hurting, and when you’ve been suffering from lower back pain for a long time, it can seem to swallow up your world.

Oral medications can cause gastrointestinal distress, and surgery may not be a feasible option for you right now. If you’ve been searching for a viable therapeutic option, you might want to talk to your doctor about Botox injections.

Wait. Botox for what?

You’re probably a little confused: After all, isn’t Botox most commonly associated with the treatment of wrinkles? You’d be right in this assumption, but there are many other uses for Botox. In fact, it was originally approved to treat strabismus, or lazy eye, by paralyzing the muscles that caused the eye to drift to one side or the other.

This ability of Botox to turn off muscle movement in tiny, targeted areas is what makes it so effective for back pain that is being caused by tight muscles or muscle spasms. At Progressive Spine & Sports Medicine, we utilize Botox for treatment of back pain on a regular basis.

When to consider Botox for low back pain

Botox is typically used when most other conservative treatment options have failed. We always complete a thorough exam to pinpoint the source of your pain and measure the amount of pain you are chronically enduring. Then we recommend treatment based on these findings. If you are a good candidate for Botox, we’ll discuss this option with you. 

How it works

Botox injections target the muscle/nerve connection/ This prevents the spasms from occurring and stops pain impulses from being sent to the brain whether you’re moving, standing, sitting, or lying down.

Peer-reviewed research and controlled studies show Botox can be effective for lower back pain. In one double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled study, Botox injected into paraspinal muscles resulted in significant pain relief in 60% of patients with chronic, refractory low back pain.

Similarly, a 53% success rate was observed in a prospective, randomized, open-label study of 75 patients. Within the 14 months of follow-up with repeat injections for those who responded favorably, 91% of the respondents continued to get relief from the Botox treatment.

Ready to talk about Botox for your low back pain? Call our office at 201-201-0443, fill out our web-based contact form, or book an appointment using our online scheduling system today.