To determine whether you or your family member are a good candidate for ITB Therapy, your health care professional will give a trial dose of the drug. Using a standard medical procedure, a small amount of the drug is injected into the spinal fluid. Then your health care professional will see how much your muscles relax over the next 6 to 8 hours. No, ITB Therapy is not a cure for severe spasticity or for the conditions with which it is associated. ITB Therapy is used to treat severe spasticity but cannot take away its cause.
Delivery makes the difference.
Often with oral medication, large doses are taken but only a small amount actually reaches the site of action at the spinal cord. With ITB Therapy, the drug is delivered directly to the spinal fluid surrounding the spinal cord, where it is needed. Since the medication does not circulate throughout the body, only tiny doses are required to be effective. Therefore, side effects are minimal. Your health care professional can precisely control the pump to deliver the exact amount of medication that you need.