Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 4, 2026

Treating Low Back Pain in Failed Back Surgery Patients with Multicolumn-lead Spinal Cord Stimulation
Published on: June 26, 2018
Intrathecal baclofen associated with improvement of consciousness disorders in spasticity patients
Konstantinos Margetis1, Stefanos I Korfias, Stylianos Gatzonis
11st Department of Neurosurgery, University of Athens, Athens, Greece.
Objective:
Intrathecal baclofen (ITB) pump is a therapeutic option for persistent vegetative state and minimal conscious state patients that have associated spasticity. We investigated whether this treatment modality can affect their level of consciousness.
Method:
In this prospective, open label, observational study, we implanted ITB pumps for the treatment of spasticity in eight patients with disorders of consciousness (vegetative state and minimally conscious state) and we followed them with the Coma Recovery Scale-Revised, the Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance scale, and the Modified Ashworth spasticity scale. Baclofen dose and complications also were noted.
Results:
The offending pathologies were traumatic brain injury in six, anoxia due to cardiac arrest in one, acute obstructive hydrocephalus in one. Two of the patients showed a marked, persistent improvement that fulfilled the criteria of emergence from minimally conscious state. Two of patients had their ITB pumps prematurely removed because of complications. The ECOG score was 4 for all patients and did not change during the study.
Conclusion:
ITB might be associated with a significant improvement in the disorder of consciousness of two patients from a total of six that had a chronic ITB treatment.
More Related Videos
07:20Author Spotlight: Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation Combined with Movement Observation in Cerebral Palsy
Published on: August 9, 2024
04:41Lumbar Intrathecal Injection of SOD1-ASOs for Precise CNS Targeting and Predictive Efficacy in Human SOD1-G93A ALS Mice
Published on: February 24, 2026
Related Concept Videos
Drug Delivery: Parenteral Route
There are three primary parenteral routes: intravenous (IV), intramuscular (IM), and subcutaneous (SC). The IV route introduces the drug directly into the bloodstream, ensuring immediate action. The IM route...
Local Anesthetics: Clinical Application as Spinal Anesthesia
Centrally Acting Muscle Relaxants: Therapeutic Uses
Centrally acting drugs are classified into spasmolytic and antispasmodic drugs. Spasmolytic drugs such as baclofen, diazepam, and tizanidine inhibit spinal motor neurons and decrease muscle tone. Spasmolytic drugs are administered for severe and chronic spasms due to multiple sclerosis, cerebral palsy, stroke, and spinal cord and muscle injuries. However,...
Skeletal Muscle Relaxants: Therapeutic Uses
Classification of Skeletal Muscle Relaxants
Peripherally acting skeletal muscle relaxants interfere with the neurotransmission at the neuromuscular end plate to induce paralysis during...
Spasmolytic Agents: Chemical Classification
A major class of centrally acting spasmolytics is the α2-agonist, such as tizanidine. These drugs bind to α2-adrenoceptors, inhibiting the release of the excitatory neurotransmitter glutamate. They also...