Medical Reports: Botox Shots

WSVN -- From migraines.

Martha Fritz: "I tried everything and anything."

To muscle pain.

Cheryl Laureano: "I was at a point of desperation."

To depression.

Kathleen Delano: "I wasn't interested in talking or communicating with friends or family."

Botox does more than just smooth away wrinkles.

Martha Fritz's migraines used to stop her from doing everyday activities, but now, Botox injections are keeping her headache-free.

Martha Fritz: "I don't miss work as much. I don't miss my son's baseball games, so Botox has made a dramatic difference in my life."

It's also made a difference for Cheryl Laureano. Cheryl suffers from torticollis. It causes her neck muscles to spasm involuntarily.

Cheryl Laureano: "If I were to just completely relax. You see my head just starts turning itself."

The Botox stops the muscles from contracting, leaving her pain free.

Dr. Zhigao Huang: "Improve the contraction of the muscle. Improve the head position. Improve the pain."

The drug also helped with Kathleen Delano's depression. A small study found Botox relieved depression in nine of 10 women.

Dr. Zhigao Huang: "You're basically preventing people from expressing those sad and angry emotions on their face."

And the study found, if you don't express those emotions, you don't have them. But Botox may not come worry-free. The FDA warns Botox has been linked to respiratory failure and death. But for these women, the drug has offered relief when nothing else could.

Christine Cruz: "Botox is also being used to treat stroke patients, those with MS and men with enlarged prostates, although it is not yet FDA-approved for these conditions."

Kelly Brockmeier, Media Relations
Shands Jacksonville
Jacksonville, FL
Kelly.brockmeier@jax.ufl.edu