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pISSN 2005-9159
eISSN 2093-0569

Review Article

Korean J Pain 2011; 24(1): 1-6

Published online March 31, 2011 https://doi.org/10.3344/kjp.2011.24.1.1

Copyright © The Korean Pain Society.

Application of Botulinum Toxin in Pain Management

Woo Seog Sim, MD*

Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, Samsung Medical Center, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.

Correspondence to: Woo Seog Sim, MD. Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, Samsung Medical Center, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, 50, Irwon-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul 135-710, Korea. Tel: +82-2-3410-2468, Fax: +82-2-3410-6626, anesthe@skku.edu

Received: January 24, 2011; Revised: January 31, 2011; Accepted: January 31, 2011

This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Abstract

Botulinum toxin has been used for the treatment of many clinical disorders by producing temporary skeletal muscle relaxation. In pain management, botulinum toxin has demonstrated an analgesic effect by reducing muscular hyperactivity, but recent studies suggest this neurotoxin could have direct analgesic mechanisms different from its neuromuscular actions. At the moment, botulinum toxin is widely investigated and used in many painful diseases such as myofascial syndrome, headaches, arthritis, and neuropathic pain. Further studies are needed to understand the exact analgesic mechanisms, efficacy and complications of botulinum toxin in chronic pain disorders.

Keywords: botulinum toxin, pain