Dystonia involves movement disorders such as cramps and incorrect posture. They can affect the entire body or just individual regions. Dystonia is usually triggered by a disorder in the deeper brain centers. Dystonia can be treated with oral medication, botulinum toxin therapy or deep brain stimulation. Find information and dystonia specialists here.
The term dystonia (Greek, disturbed muscle tension) refers to an organic disease of the brain. It leads to involuntary, sometimes spasmodic movements or abnormal postures of individual body regions or the entire body.
In Germany, at least 32,000 people suffer from dystonia.
Dystonia is caused by malfunctions in specific brain networks. Doctors assume that a disorder occurs in deeper brain centers, the basal ganglia. The activity of the nerve cells located there is abnormally increased.
For a precise diagnosis, the treating neurologist must clarify whether the dystonia is idiopathic or symptomatic. This is of crucial importance for further treatment.
In the majority of cases, the underlying cause is idiopathic dystonia (i.e. without an identifiable cause), which cannot yet be cured. However, good treatment methods are available in many cases.
Symptomatic dystonia can be treated with
can be caused. It requires treatment of the corresponding underlying disease.
In dystonia, disturbed muscle tension can lead to an abnormal posture of the entire body or individual regions of the body.
Continuous or intermittent muscle contractions result in an abnormal posture of the affected part of the body (e.g. torticollis). It is visible to the outside world and often causes social stigmatization of the person affected.
In addition, these uncontrolled muscle contractions in dystonia are often associated with pain.
Dystonia can lead to involuntary muscle contractions © Andrey Popov | AdobeStock
The treating neurologist will take a thorough medical history and carry out a clinical examination. Various additional examinations are also carried out.
Structural imaging of the brain should always be carried out to rule out "symptomatic" dystonia.
There are currently three treatment options for dystonia:
Drug therapy should take into account the degree and onset of the dystonia. In principle, a number of different medications are available for the treatment of dystonia:
The response to oral medication is often unsatisfactory and then requires further therapeutic measures.
Botulinum toxin therapy has been used very successfully for several years to treat dystonia. It is now considered the treatment of choice in most cases of dystonia.
Botulinum toxin is a neurotoxin that is injected into the affected muscles in low doses. There it has a slightly paralyzing effect on muscle activity. This often results in a reduction in the symptoms caused by the dystonia. This condition usually lasts for 2 to 4 months.
However, long-term treatment can lead to "immunization", i.e. a decrease in the therapeutic effect.
Sometimes dystonia does not respond adequately to medication or botulinum toxin therapy. For these cases, deep brain stimulation has been available as an effective treatment method since the end of the 1990s. Deep brain stimulation is also known as brain pacemaker therapy.
Two electrodes are implanted in the overactive region of the brain. There they suppress the pathological information by means of specifically controlled electrical impulses in the sense of a "jammer".
The Leading Medicine Guide's quality assurance is ensured by the following acceptance prerequisites.
