Treatment should be based on assessment by the relevant health professionals. For muscles with mild-to-moderate impairment, exercise should be the mainstay of management, and is likely to need to be prescribed by a physical therapist or other health professional skilled in<unk> ogical rehabilitation. Muscles with severe impairment are likely to be more limited in their ability to exercise, and may require help to do this. They may require additional interventions, to manage the greater<unk> ogical impairment and also greater secondary complications. These interventions may include serial casting, flexibility exercise such as sustained positioning programs, and medical interventions. Research has clearly shown that exercise is beneficial for impaired muscles, even though it was previously believed that strength exercise would increase muscle tone and impair muscle performance further. Also, in previous decades there has been a strong focus on other interventions for impaired muscles, particularly stretching and splinting, but the evidence does not support these as effective. One of the challenges for health professionals working with UMNS movement disorders is that the degree of muscle weakness makes developing an exercise programme difficult. For muscles that lack any volitional control, such as after complete spinal cord injury, exercise may be assisted, and may require equipment, such as using a standing frame to sustain a standing position. Often, muscles require specific stimulation to achieve small amounts of activity, which is most often achieved by weight-bearing (e.g. positioning and supporting a limb such that it supports body weight) or by stimulation to the muscle belly (such as electrical stimulation or vibration). Medical interventions may include such medications as baclofen, diazepam, dantrolene, or clonazepam. Phenol injections or botulinum toxin injections into a muscle belly of the<unk>  or lower extremities can be used to attempt to dampen the signals between nerve and muscle. The effectiveness of medications varies between individuals, and varies based on location of the<unk>  motor<unk>  lesion (in the brain or the spinal cord). Medications are commonly used for movement disorders, but research has not shown functional benefit for some drugs. Some studies have shown that medications have been effective in decreasing spasticity, but that this has not been accompanied by functional benefits.
Upper motor neuron syndrome
Motor neuron disease
Distal hereditary motor neuronopathies
Central cord syndrome
Vascular myelopathy
Occipital horn syndrome
Posterior cord syndrome
Tethered spinal cord syndrome