Botulinum Toxin Type A Injections into the Cricopharyngeal Muscle to Treat Upper Esophageal Dysfunction
Keywords
cricopharyngeal , botulinum toxin , upper esophageal sphincter
Abstract
Description
Dysphagia can impact people of all ages because it co-occurs with numerous disorders and health problems. Dysphagia effects over nine million people a year and mainly targets adults over the age of sixty. One cause of dysphagia may be cricopharyngeal dysfunction. This review looks at the use of Botulinum toxin type A (BtxA) injections as a way to relax the cricopharyngeal muscle to help with upper esophageal dysfunction. The literature agreed that botulinum toxin injections are a safe and effective treatment that improves swallowing function for most patients. Patients who did not benefit from BtxA may have had other complications, or a possible diffusion of the BtxA into the surrounding muscle.