Three consecutive pregnancies in a woman with spastic cerebral palsy being treated with intrathecal baclofen therapy

Kim D D Barker1, M Imran Murtuza1, Ellen V Sloan2

  • 1Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, Texas, USA.

Baclofen is a commonly used medication for spasticity in patients with an injury to the central nervous system. For some, intrathecal delivery of baclofen provides better treatment with fewer systemic side effects. Baclofen is a category C medication during pregnancy based on animal studies. This narrative review presents the three consecutive pregnancies of a woman with spastic quadriparesis due to cerebral palsy that was being treated with an intrathecal baclofen (ITB) pump. Her spasticity care occurred at a large academic institution. Her prenatal and perinatal care occurred at the adjacent county hospital. There is limited literature on the safety of the use of an ITB pump for the treatment of spasticity in pregnant women, and this patient presentation aims to describe the course for the mother and her infants as she received treatment for her spasticity with an ITB pump.