A Delphi-Based Consensus Statement on the Management of Anticoagulated Patients With Botulinum Toxin for Limb Spasticity

Abstract

Objective: To create a consensus statement on the considerations for treatment of anticoagulated patients with botulinum toxin A (BoNTA) intramuscular injections for limb spasticity.

Design: We used the Delphi method.

Setting: A multiquestion electronic survey.

Participants: Canadian physicians (N=39) who use BoNTA injections for spasticity management in their practice.

Interventions: After the survey was sent, there were e-mail discussions to facilitate an understanding of the issues underlying the responses. Consensus for each question was reached when agreement level was ≥75%.

Main outcome measures: Not applicable.

Results: When injecting BoNTA in anticoagulated patients: (1) BoNTA injections should not be withheld regardless of muscles injected; (2) a 25G or smaller size needle should be used when injecting into the deep leg compartment muscles; (3) international normalized ratio (INR) level should be ≤3.5 when injecting the deep leg compartment muscles; (4) if there are clinical concerns such as history of a fluctuating INR, recent bleeding, excessive or new bruising, then an INR value on the day of injection with point-of-care testing or within the preceding 2-3 days should be taken into consideration when injecting deep compartment muscles; (5) the concern regarding bleeding when using direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) should be the same as with warfarin (when INR is in the therapeutic range); (6) the dose and scheduling of DOACs should not be altered for the purpose of minimizing the risk of bleeding prior to BoNTA injections.

Conclusions: These consensus statements provide a framework for physicians to consider when injecting BoNTA for spasticity in anticoagulated patients. These consensus statements are not strict guidelines or decision-making steps, but rather an effort to generate common understanding in the absence of evidence in the literature.

Keywords: Anticoagulants; Botulinum toxins; Compartment syndromes; Hemorrhage; Muscle spasticity; Rehabilitation.