Non-invasive assessment of muscle spasticity in children with cerebral palsy undergoing botulinum toxin treatment using near-infrared spectroscopy.
Mehdi Nourizadeh, Maria Juricic, Jocelyn Begin and 4 others
PMID 41423601WHAT IT FOUND
Muscle oxygenation measured by NIRS rose significantly after botulinum toxin injections in children with cerebral palsy, peaking at 6 to 10 weeks and returning to baseline by 6 months.
These changes correlated with reduced spasticity scores, suggesting NIRS could track treatment response.
Key findings
01Muscle oxygenation (TOI%) increased significantly from baseline at 2-4 weeks, 6-10 weeks, and 3 months post-injection, then declined by 6 months.
02Spasticity levels measured by the Modified Ashworth Scale decreased significantly over the first 3 months and returned toward baseline by 6 months.
03There was a moderate negative correlation between muscle oxygenation and spasticity scores, meaning higher oxygenation was associated with lower spasticity.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
The study included only eight children, which severely limits generalizability and statistical power. There was no non-spastic control group, so absolute NIRS values cannot be interpreted against a normative baseline. The Modified Ashworth Scale (MAS) is subjective and prone to inter-rater variability, which may affect the validity of the correlation with NIRS. The study did not establish specific NIRS threshold values that would classify spasticity severity for clinical use. Participants received varying dosages of Dysport and had different target muscles, introducing variability that the small sample size could not fully control for.
Declared interests
The paper does not report any specific conflicts of interest or funding sources.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume NIRS is ready for clinical use. This was a pilot study with only eight participants and no control group. The correlation with spasticity scores was moderate, and the authors explicitly state that NIRS has not been validated as a standalone clinical tool.
Summarised by AI from the full paper, without a clinician reviewing it. Check it against the source before it changes what you do. Read it on PubMed →