Introduction: A new service was created to provide specialist investigation and treatment of resistant hypersalivation in neurological disorders through the provision of ultrasound-guided botulinum toxin type A (BTX-A) injections into the salivary glands Methods: Over a year the service provided assessment and treatment for eleven (11) patients with neurological disorders This also included a 5-month clinic closure due to the COVID-19 pandemic The parotid and submandibular glands of 10 patients were injected with BTX-A using ultrasound guidance Before injection, the baseline rate of salivation was assessed using a visual analogue scale In some cases, repeat injections were provided at regular planned intervals Results: Of the 11 patients treated, all (100%) reported a subjective reduction in salivation post-treatment Subjective scores from the 16 episodes of treatment indicated a reduction of 60 8% in the mean rate of salivation for all patients No serious adverse events occurred, and no procedure-related complications were reported Conclusions: This is the first year of data available for our new service and the results show that the treatment is effective, beneficial, and safe This suggests that the technique is safe and that BTX-A injections are effective for the treatment of sialorrhea in patients with neurological disorders This service can also be provided in both district and community hospitals with positive effects within a small unit set-up pending availability of appropriate equipment Keywords: Community;District;Development;Neurology;Sialorrhoea
Development of a new sialorrhea treatment service for patients with neurological disorders within a community and district hospital setting