Pelvic Floor Botulinum Toxin-A (Botox, Dysport)

“You’re going to put what….? Where??!?” 

This is definitely a question that comes up frequently when patients, community members and other providers hear that Candescent Health and Wellness provides pelvic floor botox injections. The questions that ensue range from questioning about wrinkles to incontinence and, truth be told, these are some of my favorite questions to answer.
Pelvic Floor Botox is a useful medical intervention for individuals experiencing extremely tight pelvic floor muscles, whether after the birth of a child, related to a history of sexual trauma, or due to iatrogenic hypertonicity of the pelvic floor. This condition can make everything from inserting a tampon to birthing a child miserably painful.

Many times, providers recommend Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy, to assist in training the muscles of the pelvic floor to relax (or contract) as needed. However, pelvic floor physical therapy can often be delayed due to patient discomfort and pain related to the tight muscles, which ultimately delays the patients’ treatment plan and prolongs their discomfort.
Botulinum Toxin-A (Botox, Dysport etc) temporarily paralyzes the pelvic floor muscles, the same way it does to facial muscles. In paralyzing those muscles, physical therapists and patients are able to work together to perform physical therapy exercises and dilator therapy to correct the overactivity of those muscles. Typically one or two treatments will be sufficient to fully treat a patient and get them on the road to full recovery of their pelvic floor.
There are risks associated with pelvic floor botulinum toxin therapy, which is why it is essential to have a trained professional, who has been trained specifically in pelvic floor injections, perform this procedure. Claire Walker, CNM received her training in pelvic floor botulinum toxin-A injections from one of the top urologists in the United States in 2022. She works in close collaboration with local pelvic floor physical therapists to offer injections that are appropriately timed with the patient’s treatment plan.