Background and Purpose: Up to 40% of stroke patients with paresis develop post-stroke spasticity (PSS), which induces difficult complications including pain, contracture, posture disorder. The most important factor for PSS management is its early initiation, so that early recognition of PSS is required in clinical practice. Methods: This prospective observational cohort study was conducted with a high standard of PSS assessment and a comprehensive protocol investigating possible predictive factors to identify early predictors of PSS already in the acute phase following stroke (<7 days). PSS was assessed with the Resistance to Passive movement Scale (REPAS) for major joint movements in upper- and lower limbs, based on Ashworth scale, within 7 days following stroke and after 3 months. Binary logistic regression analysis with significant clinical parameters was applied with 95% of confidence intervals (CI) to find predictors of PSS. Results: Of 145 consecutive first-ever stroke patients, 34 patients (23.4%) exhibited PSS. The Modified Rankin Scale (MRS), National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS), and Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) were revealed as strong clinical predictors of PSS. The combination of an MRS >2 (Odds Ratio (OR): 56.538, 95% CI: 17.150–186.394), NIHSS >2 (OR: 57.137, 95% CI:15.685–208.142) and MMSE <27 (OR: 6.133, 95% CI:2.653–14.178) showed positive predictive (95.2%) value for prediction of PSS (sensitivity 94.4%, specificity 93.3%). Conclusions: Besides evaluating PSS itself with a reliable and valid rating scale the common clinical scales in stroke units practice (NIHSS, MRS, MMSE) allow early identification of patients at high risk for PSS.

Introduction Post-stroke spastic movement disorder (PS-SMD) appears up to 20% in the first week following stroke and 40% in the chronic phase. It may create major hurdles to overcome in early stroke rehabilitation and as one relevant factor that reduces quality of life to a major degree in the chronic phase. Areas covered In this review we discuss predictors and early identification, clinical assessments, goal setting and management in the multiprofessional team including Botulinum neurotoxin A (BoNT-A) injection for early and chronic management of PS-SMD. Expert opinion The earlier PS-SMD is recognized and managed, the better the outcome will be and the less its complications will happen. The comprehensive management in the subacute or chronic phase of PS-SMD with BoNT-A injections requires detailed clinical assessment, patient-centered goal setting, technical-guidance of injection, effective dosing of BoNT-A per site, muscle and session and timed adjunctive treatment, delivered in a multi-professional team approach in conjunction with physical treatment. The analysis of evidence-based data showed that BoNT-A injections are safe and effective in managing focal, multi-focal and segmental PS-SMD. If indicated to avoid complications from PS-SMD or to treat it, BoNT-A therapy should be accompanied with adjunctive treatment in adequate time slots. Nowadays BoNT-A is the treatment of choice to manage focal, multifocal and segmental PS-SMD and its complications and it could be added to oral, intrathecal and surgical treatment options in severe multisegmental or generalized PS-SMD to reach patient/caregiver´s goals, especially in chronic PS-SMD.

Poststroke thalamic pain (PS-TP), a type of central poststroke pain, has been challenged to improve the rehabilitation outcomes and quality of life after a stroke. It has been shown in 2.7–25% of stroke survivors; however, the treatment of PS-TP remains difficult, and in majority of them it often failed to manage the pain and hypersensitivity effectively, despite the different pharmacotherapies as well as invasive interventions. Central imbalance, central disinhibition, central sensitization, other thalamic adaptative changes, and local inflammatory responses have been considered as its possible pathogenesis. Allodynia and hyperalgesia, as well as the chronic sensitization of pain, are mainly targeted in the management of PS-TP. Commonly recommended first- and second-lines of pharmacological therapies, including traditional medications, e.g., antidepressants, anticonvulsants, opioid analgesics, and lamotrigine, were more effective than others. Nonpharmacological interventions, such as transcranial magnetic or direct current brain stimulations, vestibular caloric stimulation, epidural motor cortex stimulation, and deep brain stimulation, were effective in some cases/small-sized studies and can be recommended in the management of therapy-resistant PS-TP. Interestingly, the stimulation to other areas, e.g., the motor cortex, periventricular/periaqueductal gray matter, and thalamus/internal capsule, showed more effect than the stimulation to the thalamus alone. Further studies on brain or spinal stimulation are required for evidence.

There are few reports on the safety and effectiveness of long-term botulinumtoxin A (BoNT A) therapy in severe chronic pain of post-herpetic neuralgia (PHN). The literature was searched with the term “neuropathic pain” and “botulinum” on PubMed (up to 29 February 2020). Pain was assessed with the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) before and after BoNT A therapy. A total of 10 clinical trials and six case reports including 251 patients with PHN were presented. They showed that BoNT A therapy had significant pain reduction (up to 30–50%) and improvement in quality of life. The effect duration seems to be correlated with BoNT A doses injected per injection site. Intervals between BoNT A injections were 10–14 weeks. No adverse events were reported in cases and clinical studies, even in the two pregnant women, whose babies were healthy. The repeated (≥6 times) intra/subcutaneous injections of incobotulinumtoxin A (Xeomin^®, Merz Pharmaceuticals, Germany) over the two years of our three cases showed marked pain reduction and no adverse events. Adjunctive local BoNT A injection is a promising option for severe PHN, as a safe and effective therapy in long-term management for chronic neuropathic pain. Its effect size and -duration seem to be depended on the dose of BoNT A injected per each point.

Post-stroke spasticity is a major factor disturbing rehabilitation and functional recovery in stroke survivors. Clinical predictors of post-stroke spasticity have often been discussed, but brain image predictors for spasticity have been insufficiently researched. The aim of this study was to use magnetic resonance imaging data to identify early brain imaging predictors for potential development of spasticity after stroke. Consecutive patients admitted to a stroke unit were screened prospectively over 22 months. Patients with first-ever supratentorial ischaemic stroke were included in the study. Standardized clinical assessments for post-stroke spasticity were prospectively performed within 7 days and at 3 months. Brain imaging data (3 Tesla magnetic resonance imaging (3T MRI)) were collected at baseline and evaluated. Brain imaging data from 103 stroke patients were collected in the hyperacute phase (< 7 days after stroke onset). A total of 23 patients developed post-stroke spasticity. The volumes of brain lesions involving motor network areas were significantly larger in patients with post-stroke spasticity compared with those without post-stroke spasticity (p < 0.01). Supratentorial lesion of < 0.5 cm3 were not associated with risk of post-stroke spasticity, except when affected the internal capsule and striatum. Lesions involving motor network areas are considered to be a precondition of post-stroke spasticity. There is, however, a low risk of developing post-stroke spasticity with < 0.5 cm3 volumes of supratentorial brain lesions involving motor network areas. Larger volume brain lesions involving motor network areas, e.g. > 3 cm3, were significantly more common in patients with post-stroke spasticity. Pure cortical lesions has no risk of post-stroke spasticity in stroke survivors.