Treatment for sialorrhea (excessive saliva) in people with
Transcription
Treatment for sialorrhea (excessive saliva) in people with
Treatment for sialorrhea (excessive saliva) in people with motor neuron disease/amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Review) Young CA, Ellis C, Johnson J, Sathasivam S, Pih N This is a reprint of a Cochrane review, prepared and maintained by The Cochrane Collaboration and published in The Cochrane Library 2011, Issue 5 http://www.thecochranelibrary.com Treatment for sialorrhea (excessive saliva) in people with motor neuron disease/amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Review) Copyright © 2011 The Cochrane Collaboration. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. TABLE OF CONTENTS HEADER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ABSTRACT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PLAIN LANGUAGE SUMMARY . . . . . . . . . BACKGROUND . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . OBJECTIVES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . METHODS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . RESULTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Figure 1. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . DISCUSSION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AUTHORS’ CONCLUSIONS . . . . . . . . . . ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS . . . . . . . . . . . REFERENCES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CHARACTERISTICS OF STUDIES . . . . . . . . DATA AND ANALYSES . . . . . . . . . . . . . APPENDICES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . HISTORY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CONTRIBUTIONS OF AUTHORS . . . . . . . . DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST . . . . . . . . . SOURCES OF SUPPORT . . . . . . . . . . . . DIFFERENCES BETWEEN PROTOCOL AND REVIEW INDEX TERMS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Treatment for sialorrhea (excessive saliva) in people with motor neuron disease/amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Review) Copyright © 2011 The Cochrane Collaboration. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 1 2 2 3 3 5 6 7 9 9 9 11 16 16 19 19 19 19 19 20 i [Intervention Review] Treatment for sialorrhea (excessive saliva) in people with motor neuron disease/amyotrophic lateral sclerosis Carolyn A Young1 , Cathy Ellis2 , Julia Johnson3 , Sivakumar Sathasivam4 , Nicky Pih5 1 The Walton Centre for Neurology and Neurosurgery, Liverpool, UK. 2 Motor Nerve Clinic, Academic Neurosciences Centre, King’s College Hospital, London, UK. 3 Speech and Language Therapy Department, King’s College Hospital, London, UK. 4 Neurology Department, The Walton Centre for Neurology and Neurosurgery, Liverpool, UK. 5 Research Office, Neuro Rehabilitation Unit, Liverpool, UK Contact address: Carolyn A Young, The Walton Centre for Neurology and Neurosurgery, Lower Lane, Fazakerley, Liverpool, L9 7LJ, UK. [email protected]. Editorial group: Cochrane Neuromuscular Disease Group. Publication status and date: New, published in Issue 5, 2011. Review content assessed as up-to-date: 30 September 2010. Citation: Young CA, Ellis C, Johnson J, Sathasivam S, Pih N. Treatment for sialorrhea (excessive saliva) in people with motor neuron disease/amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2011, Issue 5. Art. No.: CD006981. DOI: 10.1002/14651858.CD006981.pub2. Copyright © 2011 The Cochrane Collaboration. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. ABSTRACT Background Motor neuron disease (MND), also known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, is a progressive, neurodegenerative condition which may cause dysphagia, as well as limb weakness, dysarthria, emotional lability and respiratory failure. Since normal salivary production is 0.5 to 1.5 litres daily, loss of salivary clearance due to dysphagia leads to salivary pooling and sialorrhea, often resulting in distress and inconvenience to patients. Objectives To systematically review evidence on treatment of sialorrhea in MND, including medications, radiotherapy and surgery. Search methods We searched the Cochrane Neuromuscular Disease Group Specialized Register (1 October 2010), the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials )(CENTRAL) (The Cochrane Library issue 3, 2010), MEDLINE (January 1966 to September 2010), EMBASE (January 1980 to September 2010), AMED (1985 to September 2010) and CINAHL Plus (January 1937 September 2010). All bibliographies of the identified randomized trials were reviewed and authors contacted as needed. Known experts in the field were contacted to identify further published and unpublished papers. Selection criteria We included randomized and quasi-randomised controlled studies on any intervention for sialorrhea and related symptoms, in people with MND. Data collection and analysis Review authors summarised data independently in a customised data collection form and confirmed data presented in Cochrane Review Manager software. Treatment for sialorrhea (excessive saliva) in people with motor neuron disease/amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Review) Copyright © 2011 The Cochrane Collaboration. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. 1 Main results Only one randomized controlled trial was identified. This was a well designed study of botulinum toxin B injected into parotid and submandibular glands of 20 patients, which showed positive results for four weeks (Jackson 2009). There was low risk of bias in the study and no significant adverse events reported. Authors’ conclusions There is some evidence for use of botulinum toxin injections to salivary glands for the treatment of sialorrhea in MND. Further research is required on this important symptom. Data are needed on the problem of sialorrhea in MND and its measurement, both by patient self report measures and objective tests. These will allow the development of better randomized controlled trials. PLAIN LANGUAGE SUMMARY Treatment of unintentional drooling of saliva in motor neuron disease Unintentional drooling of saliva (sialorrhea) is a distressing symptom suffered by up to 25% of patients with motor neuron disease. The management of sialorrhea currently involves the use of suction, drug treatments and more invasive approaches, including injection of botulinum toxin to the salivary glands, radiotherapy to the salivary glands and ligation (surgery to tie off ) of the salivary gland ducts. An extensive search of the literature identified only one randomized controlled trial, of 20 patients, which could be included in the review. This study reported a beneficial effect of botulinum toxin type B injected into the parotid and submandibular salivary glands in patients with MND on a single occasion. The study appeared to have low risk of bias, and no serious adverse events were recorded. Although other treatments are supported by case control studies, there was no evidence to compare the effectiveness of different treatments for sialorrhea. Further research is needed to compare the different treatments available and to optimise treatment regimens. BACKGROUND Motor neuron disease (MND), also known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder characterised by relatively selective death of upper motor neurons in the cerebral cortex and lower motor neurons in the brainstem and spinal cord (Shaw 1999). This gives rise to a combination of upper and lower motor neuron signs and symptoms such as weakness in the limb and bulbar muscles with atrophy, spasticity and weight loss. The onset of MND can be insidious and it may take up to 18 months to diagnose the condition. By the time diagnosis is made, the person may have significant functional deficits and symptom control needs. Death occurs in most patients within two to five years after diagnosis, usually from ventilatory muscle weakness causing respiratory failure (Rowland 2001). The incidence of ALS/MND is one to two per 100,000 of the population (Worms 2001). At any one time, there are approximately 5000 affected people in the United Kingdom (Shaw 1999) and 25,000 in North America (McGuire 1996). In MND, approximately 70% of people present with limb involvement and 30 (Abhinav 2007) with bulbar symptoms such dysphagia, dysarthria, hoarseness and hypophonia. Eighty per cent of people with MND will develop bulbar weakness at some stage of the disease (Oliver 1996). Many people benefit from alternative feeding methods such as percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) or radiologically inserted gastrostomy (RIG/PRG) (Leigh 2003; Mitsomoto 2003). Sialorrhea, the unintentional loss of saliva from the mouth, occurs in up to 25% of people with MND. Veis and colleagues showed that for people with MND, sialorrhea is not caused by increased production of saliva but by the inability to swallow secretions because of tongue spasticity, weakness of face, mouth and pharyngeal muscles, and loss of oropharyngeal co-ordination and function (Veis 2000). There are two main types of saliva produced by the three major salivary glands; serous saliva, which is thin and watery, and mucoidal saliva, which is thicker and more viscous. The nose and lungs also contribute to the flow of secretions, usually in the form of thick, tenacious ’phlegm’ (Newall 1996). All these forms of secretions can cause patient discomfort. Serous saliva can be watery and constantly dribbling from the side of the mouth, and mucoidal saliva may be tenacious and thick, making it difficult to clear and contributing to the sensation of choking Treatment for sialorrhea (excessive saliva) in people with motor neuron disease/amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Review) Copyright © 2011 The Cochrane Collaboration. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. 2 and associated panic. It is important to distinguish between thin, runny saliva and thick, mucous secretions because the treatment options differ (Miller 1999). The skin may become excoriated from constant exposure to moisture, voice quality may be compromised and sleep may be disturbed by secretion build-up. These symptoms may lead to increased fatigue, embarrassment, social withdrawal and isolation. Therefore, sialorrhea can significantly affect quality of life. Riluzole, a putative glutamate release blocker, is currently the only drug licensed for human use in MND. Its effect is modest, only prolonging survival by about two to three months in people with MND (Miller 2007). Therefore, symptom control and maximisation of quality of life are the principal aims of any treatment (Oliver 1996). At present, the treatment of sialorrhea is largely a matter of trial and error, using a variety of drug treatments, natural remedies, oral suction, and more invasive approaches, such as injection of botulinum toxin into salivary glands, radiotherapy to salivary glands or ligation of salivary gland ducts. Behavioural techniques are also advocated in the early management stages such as purposeful swallowing of the saliva as it builds up in the mouth and before speaking. This has been shown to be effective in people with Parkinson’s disease where a metronome brooch was used as a reminder to cue a conscious saliva swallow (Marks 2001). Management appears largely governed by the personal preference of the clinician, and in the case of more invasive measures, the local availability of these techniques. Frequently, the person with MND will need to try a number of treatment options with varying degrees of success. Several potential treatments have been described in the literature. Salivation is mainly mediated through parasympathetic stimulation. Acetylcholine is the active neurotransmitter, binding at muscarinic receptors in the salivary glands (Meningaud 2006). Thus, cholinergic muscarinic receptor antagonists or drugs with these properties, such as atropine, scopolamine (hyoscine), glycopyrronium bromide and tricyclic antidepressants can be used to treat sialorrhea in MND (Borasio 1997). Whereas the stimulation of cholinergic receptors produces thin, serous secretions, that of beta adrenergic receptors produce thick protein and mucus-rich secretions. Beta blockers have been shown to produce relief from thick secretions in 12 of 16 people with bulbar MND (Newall 1996). The mucolytic drug carbocisteine may also be beneficial in MND as it reduces elastic modules of mucus and improves mucociliary transport (Sakakura 1985). Use of botulinum toxin to reduce salivary flow in MND was first hypothesised in modern day literature by Bushara in 1997 (Bushara 1997). It is thought that botulinum toxin injections reduce sialorrhea by blocking the release of acetylcholine at the cholinergic neurosecretory junction of salivary glands (Burgen 1949). There are now several series reported, utilising different preparations of botulinum toxin and treatment regimens, admin- istered by direct injection or a transductal approach, with varying outcome measures (Contarino 2007; Costa 2008; Giess 2000; Jackson 2009; Lipp 2003; Manrique 2005; Porta 2001; Scott 2005 and Verma 2006). In addition, various destructive measures have been trialled in open label studies as a means to reduce salivary production. One approach is radiotherapy to the salivary glands, either once or in divided fractions (Andersen 2001; Harriman 2001; Neppelberg 2007; Stalpers 2002 and Winterholler 2001). Another area is surgical interventions, to excise salivary glands, or destroy nerve supply to the gland by neurectomy of the tympanic nerve (Janzen 1988). This literature review shows that several treatments have been described in case series and open label studies, utilising a variety of outcome measures and treating a range of case severity. A systematic review may benefit clinicians and inform better practice. OBJECTIVES We reviewed trials of interventions designed to minimise sialorrhea in MND. METHODS Criteria for considering studies for this review Types of studies All randomized and quasi-randomised controlled studies were included in the review. The nature of treatment interventions made it impossible to include only double-blinded trials and so nonblinded trials were eligible. Non-randomised trials were included in the Discussion. Types of participants Only trials that explicitly stated that participants had been diagnosed with probable or definite motor neuron disease or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis according to recognised criteria, preferably the El Escorial Criteria (Brooks 2000) were included for review. Participants were over 18 years of age and of either sex. Types of interventions The following interventions were compared with each other, placebo or no intervention: 1. Any drug treatment administered via any route. Treatment for sialorrhea (excessive saliva) in people with motor neuron disease/amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Review) Copyright © 2011 The Cochrane Collaboration. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. 3 2. Injection of botulinum toxin in parotid and/or submandibular glands. 3. Radiotherapy to the salivary glands. 4. Surgical techniques, for example the ligation of parotid and submandibular salivary ducts. 5. Other treatments identified in the literature, for example complementary therapies. Searching other resources All bibliographies of the identified randomized trials were reviewed and authors contacted as needed. Known experts in the field and pharmaceutical companies were contacted to identify further published and unpublished papers. Papers in languages other than English were included and translated as necessary. Data collection and analysis Types of outcome measures Selection of studies Primary outcomes 1. Subjective improvement in sialorrhea reported by participants in the short-term (one to 12 weeks) and long-term (more than 12 weeks). Subjective improvement was measured using a validated scale, or by asking participants if they improved or not. Secondary outcomes 1. Reduction in the amount of saliva production in the shortterm (one to 12 weeks) and long-term (more than 12 weeks), using an objective measure such as the weight of swabs or amount of tissue used pre- and post-intervention. 2. Quality of life of participants measured by a validated scale in the short-term (one to 12 weeks) and long-term (more than 12 weeks). 3. Adverse effects attributable to any intervention. Titles and abstracts identified from the searches were checked by all review authors independently, to produce shortlists of potentially relevant studies. The shortlists were crosschecked (CAY) and a final shortlist agreed by discussion and consensus. The full text of all potentially relevant studies was obtained for independent assessment by all review authors, who independently completed data extraction forms. These covered inclusion criteria and graded methodological quality. The data extraction forms were crosschecked for any discrepancies (CAY). Decisions were based on consensus views between all review authors. Data extraction and management Data extraction onto a specially designed form was performed independently by two review authors (JJ, SS) and checked by the other two (CE, CAY). One review author entered the data into the software (CE) and one checked the data entered (CAY). Assessment of risk of bias in included studies Search methods for identification of studies Electronic searches We searched the Cochrane Neuromuscular Disease Group Specialized Register (1 October 2010) using the following search terms: Sialorrhoea OR sialorrhea OR Drooling OR dribbling OR Saliva OR Salivation OR hypersalivation OR Dysphagia OR Deglutition Disorder OR Swallowing difficulties AND Motor Neurone Disease OR Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis OR ALS OR MND OR Progressive Bulbar Palsy. This strategy was adapted to search the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) (The Cochrane Library issue 3, 2010), MEDLINE (January 1966 to September 2010), EMBASE (January 1980 to September 2010), AMED (1985 to September 2010) and CINAHL Plus (January 1937 to September 2010). The search strategies can be found in Appendix 1; Appendix 2; Appendix 3, Appendix 4 and Appendix 5 respectively. We assessed risk of bias according to the methods in the Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions (Higgins 2008). The methodological quality assessment took into account sequence generation, allocation concealment, blinding (for patient reported outcomes, objective outcomes, clinician reported outcomes, carer reported outcomes), whether incomplete outcome data was addressed, selective outcome reporting and other sources of bias such as exactness of the description of the clinical status, explicit outcome criteria, and how studies dealt with baseline differences between the experimental groups. We graded these items ’Yes’ for a low risk of bias, ’No’ for a high risk of bias and ’Unclear’ when the risk of bias was uncertain or the item was not relevant to the study. We specified that if agreement was poor, we would reassess the studies and reach agreement by consensus. We have described the risk of bias of included studies, and discussed the overall reliability of the evidence in the light of this. Had data been appropriate for this, we would have undertaken sensitivity analyses to demonstrate the effect of downweighting or ignoring those studies that had received low scores in the individual aspects of quality criteria on the meta-analyses. Treatment for sialorrhea (excessive saliva) in people with motor neuron disease/amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Review) Copyright © 2011 The Cochrane Collaboration. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. 4 Measures of treatment effect We analysed all the primary and secondary outcomes under consideration. If data proved adequate for meta-analysis, we planned to calculate a weighted treatment effect across trials using the Cochrane statistical package, Review Manager (RevMan). The results were to be expressed as relative risks (RRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) and risk differences (RDs) with 95% CIs for dichotomous outcomes, and weighted mean differences (WMDs) and 95% CIs for continuous outcomes. Adverse events We summarised any adverse events, and would have categorised any deemed severe, or leading to cessation of treatment. Economic issues We planned to discuss the cost-effectiveness of interventions where there was information available to do this. Assessment of heterogeneity We planned to test for heterogeneity across trials, and if found we undertook to do sensitivity analyses by repeating the calculation omitting the trials which had low scores on individual quality items. If heterogeneity was not explained by variations in trial quality we undertook to use a random-effects approach to obtain the pooled estimates from the group of trials. RESULTS Description of studies See: Characteristics of included studies; Characteristics of excluded studies. Electronic searches produced 158 references. The number of references retrieved from each database was MEDLINE = 86, EMBASE = 46, AMED = 2, CINAHL Plus = 22, CENTRAL = 10, Register = 14 but most of these were excluded because of duplication between databases, or because they did not report a clinical trial (reviews, case reports, and so on). We screened 19 studies in full text and excluded a further study on the basis of the translation of the abstract. Of the remaining studies, the majority did not meet eligibility criteria as randomized controlled trials in patients with MND. There was an uncontrolled trial of beta antagonists (Newall 1996). A number of studies of botulinum toxin injections to the parotid and/or submandibular glands (Contarino 2007; Costa 2008; Giess 2000; Manrique 2005; Porta 2001; Scott 2005; and Verma 2006) were not controlled. One placebo-controlled study randomized patients to three different doses of botulinum toxin or placebo, using an unspecified method, but it was not possible to separate the data on the 12 MND patients from the 20 other participants suffering from Parkinson’s disease, multiple system atrophy or corticobasal degeneration (Lipp 2003). Levitski compared botulinum toxin to amitriptyline but randomization was not described and patients purchased their treatment which may have biased results (Levitskii 2005). There were several uncontrolled studies on the effect of radiotherapy to the submandibular and parotid glands (Andersen 2001; Harriman 2001; Neppelberg 2007; Stalpers 2002 and Winterholler 2001). See Characteristics of excluded studies. We identified one randomized controlled trial in MND (Jackson 2009) (see Characteristics of included studies). This study randomized 20 patients with MND and sialorrhea refractory to medical therapy to either botulinum toxin type B to parotid and submandibular glands, or placebo. Participants were assessed at baseline which was the day of randomization and injection under electromyographic guidance, and then at 2,4,8 and 12 weeks, with a telephone follow-up at 1 week which could trigger an attendance if the Revised ALS Functional Rating Scale (ALSFRS-R) swallowing or respiratory scale had changed by more than one point. Two injections were given to each of the parotid and submandibular glands bilaterally, i.e.eight injections per patient. The injection, via a monopolar electromyography needle attached to a 1 ml syringe, contained either 1 ml normal saline, or botulinum toxin type B 2,500 units diluted with normal saline to a total volume of 1 ml. Absence of motor unit activity was used to confirm needle placement in glandular/soft tissue. Each parotid gland received 0.1 ml at two sites, directing the needle between the sternocleidomastoid muscle and angle of mandible. Each submandibular gland received two injections of 0.15 ml, placing the needle in the submandibular triangle. Pretreatment with topical lidocaine/ prilocaine (EMLA cream) was available if requested prior to the injection. The primary outcome was the participant’s global impression of change recorded on a 5 point Likert scale 8 weeks after injection. Secondary outcome measures were listed as change in saliva volumes, number of times suctioned, patient and caregiver assessment of benefit, ALSFRS-R, and quality of life measured using the schedule for evaluation of individual quality of life directing weighting (SEIQoL-DW), a quality of life self rating scale using five cues chosen and rated by the patient. Concomitant treatment with anticholinergic drugs was kept stable or allowed to reduce during the trial and outcome measures were collected at the same time of day and after the patients had refrained from eating or drinking for one hour. Questionnaires were done independently by patient and caregiver and completed before any interaction with the study physicians. Following the 12 week double-blind phase, participants could enrol into an open label extension for three months. This used the same method of injection except that the dose of botulinum toxin Treatment for sialorrhea (excessive saliva) in people with motor neuron disease/amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Review) Copyright © 2011 The Cochrane Collaboration. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. 5 could be adjusted so that the total dose did not exceed 5,000 units. Risk of bias in included studies Only one study met criteria to be included in the review (Jackson 2009). In this study, all participants had probable or definite ALS according to World Federation of Neurology criteria and had to have sialorrhea which was refractory to treatment with at least two anticholinergic medications (or be intolerant of anticholinergic treatments.) Participants were aged 21 to 85 years, had forced vital capacity >20% predicted, could not have received any previous treatment with botulinum toxin, and were recruited from three “ALS centers”. Randomisation assignment was by a random numbers table (even botulinum toxin, odd normal saline) stratified in blocks of four for each of the three sites. Opaque envelopes retained securely by an unblinded investigator were opened sequentially whenever a patient was randomized, this investigator would then prepare an injection containing botulinum toxin or saline in a closed room away from the blinded investigator and participant. The unblinded investigator had no direct contact with the patients. The 20 participants showed no statistically significant differences between treatment and placebo groups for age, disease duration, bulbar involvement, medical treatment, ALSFRS-R, SEIQOLDW, baseline patient assessment of saliva thickness or problem severity, or volume of saliva. There was a higher proportion of male patients in the placebo group (67% versus 36%). Of 20 subjects randomized, 18 completed the double-blind phase with one lost to follow-up and one suffering fatal cardiac arrest, both from the treatment arm. The investigator and the safety monitor felt the death was unrelated to study medication. Fifteen of 18 eligible patients entered the open label extension, 7/9 treatment group and 8/9 placebo group. No information was given about why patients declined the open label study. One further patient was lost to follow-up during the open label study, from the arm which was originally placebo. No data are provided about outcomes from the open label phase. An unblinding questionnaire was done for both patients and investigators at 12 weeks. Seventy per cent of investigators and 90% subjects guessed the treatment allocation correctly, suggesting that despite excellent attempts to maintain blinding the double-blind was not preserved. This may have produced bias in the primary outcome and other self report measures. The study appeared to be at low risk of bias. A summary of the review authors’s judgements on each risk of bias item can be found at Figure 1 Figure 1. Risk of bias summary: review authors’ judgements about each risk of bias item for each included study. Treatment for sialorrhea (excessive saliva) in people with motor neuron disease/amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Review) Copyright © 2011 The Cochrane Collaboration. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. 6 Effects of interventions Primary outcome The primary outcome measure of the subjective improvement in sialorrhea reported by participants in the short-term was ascertained by asking patients eight weeks after the injection. This outcome measure of patient-rated impression of change was dichotomised to improvement or not, and analysed using Fisher’s exact test. It showed a consistent difference in favour of botulinum toxin, which was statistically significant at week 2 (treatment 82% improved, placebo 38%, P < 0.05) and week 4 (treatment 90%, placebo 44%, P < 0.05). However the difference was not statistically significant at week 8, which was the a priori primary outcome. At two weeks 38% placebo patients and 82% of botulinum toxin treated patients reported improvement on a patient global impression of change measure, and at four weeks the figures were 44% and 90% respectively. These proportions were statistically significantly different at P < 0.05. At 8 weeks and 12 weeks there was no significant difference (8 weeks placebo 22%, botulinum 67%; 12 weeks placebo 14%, botulinum 50%). Long-term outcomes (more than 12 weeks) were not collected for any variable. Secondary outcomes The objective outcome measure of change in volume of saliva produced, as measured with funnel and tube over 5 minutes, consistently favoured botulinum toxin. This difference reached statistical significance at week 2 (treatment 0.07, SD 0.2; placebo 0.84, SD 0.8, P < 0.05) and week 4 (treatment 0.02, SD 0.04; placebo 0.97, SD 0.5, P < 0.05) but not thereafter. No data were provided on number of times suctioned. Other secondary outcome measures of patient assessment of saliva problem and thickness, and caregiver assessment of saliva problem, showed trends in favour of botulinum toxin. These reached statistical significance (VAS analysed with repeated measures of variance, P < 0.05) at different times in the 12 week follow-up, with patient assessment of both saliva thickness and problem statistically significant at 12 weeks. It should be noted that the unblinding questionnaire done at this time point revealed 90% patients could correctly guess their treatment allocation. Quality of life of participants measured by using the SEIQOL-DW favoring botulinum toxin. The clinicians’ assessment of marked improvement showed a statistically significant difference with botulinum toxin but not placebo at week 2 only. Treatment appeared safe with no increase in aspiration pneumonia, dysphagia or deteriorating vital capacity related to the trial medication. There were no severe adverse events related by investigators or safety monitors to study medication. As this was a single dose study, cessation of treatment from adverse events does not apply. However, the paper does not describe any restrictions from the investigators on participants entering the open label phase, although reasons for three patients not to proceed to the open label study (two from treatment and one from placebo arms) were not specified. DISCUSSION Extensive literature review identified just one randomized controlled study of treatment of sialorrhea in MND. This was a positive study of a single session of botulinum toxin type B injections to parotid and submandibular glands, which produced both subjective and objective benefits in patients for some weeks after the injection. The eligibility criteria specified that the study population had to have inadequate response to, or intolerance of, anticholinergic medications, and concomitant drug treatment had to be stable or reducing during follow-up. Randomisation and analysis appeared good and data completeness was satisfactory. The intervention was described with sufficient detail to allow replication by other clinicians. Despite excellent methodology to maintain blinding, the majority of participants and investigators correctly guessed their treatment allocation at the end of the double-blind phase. This loss of blinding may be a corollary of identifying an effective treatment. The clinical context is that patients with MND almost always show an inexorably progressive course, and thus sialorrhea does not spontaneously remit but instead would be anticipated to worsen as bulbar function deteriorates. Therefore, drug effect is a major source of unblinding in a controlled trial. When choosing outcome measures it may therefore be preferable to utilise objective quantitative measures less influenced by unblinding, such as volume of saliva produced in unit time, as the primary outcome. Careful consideration of trial design for future studies will be important. Ethical considerations suggest that the placebo controlled phase should be as short as the postulated mechanism of action of the treatment allows. Volunteers who commence on placebo phase might also be automatically offered the active intervention unless safety considerations have arisen in the first phase (delayed commencement design). Trials will have greater scientific utility Treatment for sialorrhea (excessive saliva) in people with motor neuron disease/amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Review) Copyright © 2011 The Cochrane Collaboration. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. 7 if all patients remain blinded but this is more difficult with such a design where participants will know they are all on active agent in the second half of the study. With blinding maintained the patients on active treatment throughout contribute data on longterm safety and sustained response, and the patients who switch to active provide more information on efficacy. Trials are likely to need multi-centre involvement, and the randomization may include comparing more than one dose against placebo, given the lack of preliminary data. There are other non randomized trials, typically open label, on use of botulinum toxin to reduce saliva production in MND. These support a beneficial effect of botulinum toxin, some utilising objective, quantitative outcome measures. Giess and colleagues injected botulinum toxin in the parotid glands only of three MND patients and in the parotid and submandibular glands of two MND patients (Giess 2000). A significant reduction in the number of paper handkerchiefs used daily was found four weeks after the last injection. Four of the five participants reported improvement in quality of life associated with marked reduction of sialorrhea, evidenced by reduced radiotracer uptake on parotid salivary gland scintigraphy after the botulinum injections. One participant with rapidly progressive disease did not show clinical benefit after repeated parotid and submandibular gland injections, despite a markedly reduced radiotracer uptake in the parotid glands. In another open-labelled study, botulinum toxin was injected in the parotid glands of 10 participants with MND (Verma 2006). Of the eight people who completed the study, five showed improvement of 2.5 or more on the visual analogue scale (VAS). In addition, the paper tissue count was significantly lower at four weeks after treatment. Injection of both parotid and submandibular glands was reported by Costa and colleagues, who showed 70% mean reduction in VAS of sialorrhea severity in 12/16 patients, and 60% reduction in cotton roll weight to judge saliva production (Costa 2008). Porta and colleagues reported improvement in sialorrhea in three of the four participants with MND who had ultrasound guided botulinum toxin injections in both parotid and submandibular glands (Porta 2001). In this study, a visual analogue scale completed by participants was used to assess the rate of salivation. In a study by Manrique and colleagues, four of the five participants with MND injected with botulinum toxin in the parotid and submandibular glands reported significant improvement of symptoms and quality of life based on a clinical questionnaire (Manrique 2005). Another study reported an overall significant reduction of sialorrhea, as measured by cotton rolls weight, and significant improvement in four clinical evaluation scales in a group of 18 participants (nine with MND and nine with Parkinson’s disease) who had undergone ultrasound guided injections of botulinum toxin in the parotid and mandibular glands (Contarino 2007). Botulinum toxin injections to the salivary glands have a number of potential side effects, the more common ones include viscous saliva, local pain, chewing weakness and, because the individual dose response is unpredictable, dry mouth (Costa 2008; Porta 2001). Treatment generally appears well tolerated, though serious adverse effects such as infection of salivary gland and dysphagia are reported (Winterholler 2001). The published data on radiotherapy of salivary glands to reduce saliva production in MND is all open label. Andersen and colleagues reported on a prospective pilot study of low-dose radiation therapy to the parotid and submandibular glands of participants with MND (Andersen 2001). On each side, the radiation dose was 7 gray (Gy) (Gy as a single dose in the first 13 participants and 7.5 Gy in the last five participants. Sixteen of the 18 participants treated reported satisfactory to good reduction in drooling lasting up to four to six months, one participant developed xerostomia and needed saliva substitutes and another participant reported no effect. Another study reported treating the submandibular and parotid glands of five MND participants with a single fraction of 8 Gy and four participants with two fractions of 6.25 Gy (total 12.5 Gy) (Harriman 2001). It was found that 8 Gy of radiation was effective in controlling drooling and increasing the dose did not improve initial control. In the 8 Gy group, four of the five participants had significant subjective benefit at two weeks posttreatment. In this group, three of five participants completed the two-month visit and of these, two had significant benefit both subjectively (measured by a questionnaire) and objectively (measured by the weight of tissue rolls). In the 12.5 Gy group, one of three participants alive at two weeks post-treatment reported subjective benefit, while both the participants that completed the two-month visit showed subjective and objective improvement. Long-term control of sialorrhea was difficult to evaluate as the participants entered in the study were very ill and their life expectancy was very short. Stalpers and Moser reported treating 19 participants with MND with radiotherapy to the parotid glands (Stalpers 2002). The prescribed radiation dose in all participants was 12 Gy in two fractions once a week (Stalpers 2002). Three participants received one fraction only, of which two already had a satisfactory response after the first fraction, and one did not want a second fraction. Fourteen participants reported a satisfactory response within two to three weeks of the initial radiation, complete in 11 and partial in three. Four participants without improvement after initial treatment were re-irradiated, with only one showing partial improvement. Adverse effects of radiotherapy in these studies were mild, such as parotid pain and dry mouth (Andersen 2001). From a surgical point of view, there are very few published case series. In one small series, five MND patients having submandibular gland excisions had only limited control of drooling whereas one having unilateral tympanic neurectomy showed better treatment response (Janzen 1988). Treatment for sialorrhea (excessive saliva) in people with motor neuron disease/amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Review) Copyright © 2011 The Cochrane Collaboration. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. 8 AUTHORS’ CONCLUSIONS Implications for practice There is extremely limited evidence from randomized controlled trials about treatments to reduce sialorrhea in MND. The well designed trial on botulinum toxin type B injected into parotid and submandibular glands showed beneficial effects for four or more weeks (Jackson 2009). research designs must also reflect the need for objective outcome measures such as rate of production of saliva or salivary gland scintigraphy. These are necessary because an effective intervention may have an unblinding effect. Placebo controlled trials with intent-to-treat analysis are still important, as there may be many unpredictable factors which influence sialorrhea, such as mouth breathing, general hydration, diet, disease stage, and concomitant medication. Implications for research There is a need for considerable further work on treating this distressing symptom. Fundamental understanding of the nature of sialorrhea is required to differentiate between thick, mucous secretions and watery, salivary drooling. It would also be useful to validate a patient self report measure, as the previous studies have used different VAS and many unvalidated questionnaires. Future ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The Cochrane Neuromuscular Group staff have provided invaluable assistance with literature searches and advice on the Cochrane software. We thank Prof Vasya Vlassov for assistance with Russian translation, and the Walton Centre Neurological Disability Fund for grant support. REFERENCES References to studies included in this review Jackson 2009 {published data only} Jackson CE, Gronseth G, Rosenfeld J, Barohn RJ, Dubinsky R, Simpson CB, et al.Randomized double-blind study of botulinum toxin type B for sialorrhea in ALS patients. Muscle and Nerve 2009;39(2):137–43. [PUBMED: 19145653] References to studies excluded from this review Andersen 2001 {published data only} Andersen PM, Grönberg H, Franzen L, Funegard U. External radiation of the parotid glands significantly reduces drooling in patients with motor neurone disease with bulbar paresis. Journal of the Neurological Sciences 2001;191(1-2): 111–4. [PUBMED: 11677000] Bhatia 1999 {published data only} Bhatia KP, Münchau A, Brown P. Botulinum toxin is a useful treatment in excessive drooling in saliva. Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry 1999; Vol. 67, issue 5:697. [PUBMED: 10577041] Carod 2003 {published data only} Carod Artal FJ. Treatment of sialorrhoea in neurological diseases with trans-dermic injections of botulinum toxin type A in the parotid glands [Tratamiento de la sialorrea en enfermedades neurologicas mediante inyecciones transcutaneas de toxina botulinica A en las glandulas parotidas.]. Neurologia 2003;18(5):280–4. [PUBMED: 12768517] Contarino 2007 {published data only} Contarino MF, Pompili M, Tittoto P, Vanacore N, Sabatelli M, Cedrone A, et al.Botulinum toxin B ultrasound-guided injections for sialorrhea in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and Parkinson’s disease. Parkinsonism and Related Disorders 2007;13(5):299–303. [PUBMED: 16807056] Costa 2008 {published data only} Costa J, Rocha ML, Ferreira J, Evangelista T, Coelho M, de Carvalho M. Botulinum toxin type-B improves sialorrhea and quality of life in bulbar onset amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Journal of Neurology 2008;255(4):545–50. [PUBMED: 18283399] Giess 2000 {published data only} Giess R, Naumann M, Werner E, Riemann R, Beck M, Puls I, et al.Injections of botulinum toxin A into the salivary glands improve sialorrhoea in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry 2000;69 (1):121–3. [PUBMED: 10864618] Gilio 2010 {published data only} Gilio F, Iacovelli E, Frasca V, Gabriele M, Giacomelli E, Picchiori F, et al.Botulinum toxin type A for the treatment of sialorrhoea in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: A clinical and neurophysiological study. Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis 2010;11(4):359-63. Harriman 2001 {published data only} Harriman M, Morrison M, Hay J, Revonta M, Eisen A, Lentle B. Use of radiotherapy for control of sialorrhea in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. The Journal of Otolaryngology 2001;30(4):242–5. [PUBMED: 11771037] Heiman-Patterson 2001 {published data only} Heiman-Patterson TD, Rampal N, Brannagan TH, Acosta T, Forshew DA, Bromberg MB. The Spectrum of Patient Symptoms in ALS and Symptom Management. Neurology 56;8 Suppl 3:A99. Treatment for sialorrhea (excessive saliva) in people with motor neuron disease/amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Review) Copyright © 2011 The Cochrane Collaboration. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. 9 Levitskii 2005 {published data only} Levitskii GN, Alekhin AV, Serdiuk AV, Morgunova MS, Koneva ON, Skvortsova VI. Pharmacological therapy of sialorrhea in patients with motor neuron disease. Zhurnal Nevropatologii i Psikhiatrii Imeni S. S. Korsakova 2005;105 (3):19–22. [PUBMED: 15822738] Lipp 2003 {published data only} Lipp A, Trottenberg T, Schink T, Kupsch A, Arnold G. A randomized trial of botulinum toxin A for treatment of drooling. Neurology 2003;61(9):1279–81. [PUBMED: 14610139] Manrique 2005 {published data only} Manrique D. Application of botulinum toxin to reduce the saliva in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Brazilian Journal of Otorhinolaryngology 2005;71(5):566–9. [PUBMED: 16612515] Neppelberg 2007 {published data only} Neppelberg E, Haugen DF, Thorsen L, Tysnes OB. Radiotherapy reduces sialorrhea in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. European Journal of Neurology 2007;14(12): 1373–7. [PUBMED: 17941851] Newall 1996 {published data only} Newall AR, Orser R, Hunt M. The control of oral secretions in bulbar ALS/MND. Journal of the Neurological Sciences 1996;139 Suppl:43–4. [PUBMED: 8899657] Porta 2001 {published data only} Porta M, Gamba M, Bertacchi G, Vaj P. Treatment of sialorrhoea with ultrasound guided botulinum toxin type A injection in patients with neurological disorders. Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry 2001;70(4):538–40. [PUBMED: 11254784 ] Scott 2005 {published data only} Scott KR, Kothari MJ, Venkatesh YS, Murphy T, Simmons Z. Parotid gland injections of botulinum toxin a are effective in treating sialorrhea in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. journal of Clinical Neuromuscular Disease 2005;7(2):62–5. [PUBMED: 19078785] Stalpers 2002 {published data only} Stalpers LJ, Moser EC. Results of radiotherapy for drooling in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Neurology 2002;58(8): 1308. [PUBMED: 11971112] Verma 2006 {published data only} Verma A, Steele J. Botulinum toxin improves sialorrhea and quality of living in bulbar amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Muscle and Nerve 2006;34(2):235–7. [PUBMED: 16583370] Winterholler 2001 {published data only} Winterholler MG, Erbguth FJ, Wolf S, Kat S. Botulinum toxin for the treatment of sialorrhoea in ALS: serious side effects of a transductal approach. Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry 2001; Vol. 70, issue 3:417–8. [PUBMED: 11248905] Additional references Abhinav 2007 Abhinav K, Stanton B, Johnston C, Hardstaff J, Orrell RW, Howard R, et al.Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis in South-East England: A Population based study. The SouthEast England register for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (SEALS Registry). Neuroepidemiology 2007 ;29(1-2):44–8. [PUBMED: 17898523] Borasio 1997 Borasio GB, Voltz R. Palliative care in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Journal of Neurology 1997;244(Suppl 4):S11–7. [PUBMED: 9402548] Brooks 2000 Brooks BR, Miller RG, Swash M, Munsat TL, World Federation of Neurology Research Group on Motor Neuron Diseases. El Escorial revisited: revised criteria for the diagnosis of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Other Motor Neuron Disorders 2000;1 (5):293–9. [PUBMED: 11464847] Burgen 1949 Burgen AS, Dickens F, Zatman LJ. The action of botulinum toxin on the neuro-muscular junction. Journal of Physiology 1949;109(1-2):10–24. [PUBMED: 15394302] Bushara 1997 Bushara KO. Sialorrhoea in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a hypothesis of a new treatment - botulinum toxin A injections of the parotid glands. Medical Hypotheses 1997; 48(4):337–9. [PUBMED: 9160288 ] Higgins 2008 Higgins JPT, Green S (editors). Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions Version 5.0.2 [updated September 2009]. The Cochrane Collaboration, 2009.. Available from www.cochrane-handbook.org. The Cochrane Collaboration. Janzen 1988 Janzen VD, Rae RE, Hudson AJ. Otolaryngologic manifestations of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. The Journal of Otolaryngology 1988;17(1):41–2. [PUBMED: 3343721 ] Leigh 2003 Leigh PN, Abrahams S, Al-Chalabi A, Ampong MA, Goldstein LH, Johnson J, et al. King’s MND Care and Research Team. The management of motor neurone disease. Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry 2003;74(Suppl 4):iv32–iv47. [PUBMED: 14645465] Marks 2001 Marks L, Turner K, O’Sullivan J, Deighton B, Lees A. Drooling in Parkinson’s disease: a novel speech and language therapy intervention. International Journal of Language and Communication Disorders 2001;36 Suppl:282–7. [PUBMED: 11340797] McGuire 1996 McGuire D, Garrison L, Armon C, Barohn R, Bryan W, Miller RG, et al.Relationship of the Tufts Quantitative Neuromuscular Exam (TQNE) and the Sickness Impact Profile (SIP) in measuring progression of ALS. SSNJV/ CNTF ALS Study Group. Neurology 1996;46(5):1442–4. [PUBMED: 8628496] Treatment for sialorrhea (excessive saliva) in people with motor neuron disease/amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Review) Copyright © 2011 The Cochrane Collaboration. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. 10 Meningaud 2006 Meningaud JP, Pitak-Arnnop P, Chikhani L, Bertrand JC. Drooling of saliva: a review of the etiology and management options. Oral Surgery, Oral Medicine, Oral Pathology, Oral Radiology and Endodontics 2006;101(1): 48–57. [PUBMED: 16360607] Miller 1999 Miller RG, Rosenberg JA, Gelinas DF, Mitsumoto H, Newman D, Sufit R, et al.Practice parameter: the care of the patient with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (an evidence-based review): report of the Quality Standards Subcommittee of the American Academy of Neurology: ALS Practice Parameters Task Force. Neurology 1999;52(7):1311–23. [PUBMED: 10227612] Miller 2007 Miller RG, Mitchell JD, Lyon M, Moore DH. Riluzole for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)/motor neuron disease (MND). Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2007, Issue 1. [DOI: 10.1002/14651858; PUBMED: 17253460] Mitsomoto 2003 Mitsomoto H, Davidson M, Moore D, Gad N, Brandis M, Ringel S, et al. ALS CARE Study Group. Percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) in patients with ALS and bulbar dysfunction. Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Other Motor Neuron Disorders 2003;4(3):177–85. [PUBMED: 13129795] Oliver 1996 Oliver D. The quality of care and symptom control - the effects on the terminal phase of ALS/MND. Journal of the Neurological Sciences 1996;139 Suppl:134–6. [PUBMED: 8899674] Rowland 2001 Rowland LP, Shneider NA. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. New England Journal of Medicine 2001;344(22):1688–700. [PUBMED: 11386269] Sakakura 1985 Sakakura Y, Majima Y, Saida S, Ukai K, Miyoshi Y. Reversibility of reduced mucociliary clearance in chronic sinusitis. Clinical Otolaryngology and Allied Sciences 1985; 10(2):79–83. [PUBMED: 4028471] Shaw 1999 Shaw PJ. Motor neurone disease. BMJ 1999;318(7191): 1118–21. [PUBMED: 10213726] Veis 2000 Veis S. Salivary flow in persons with ALS. 11th International Symposium on ALS/MND, Aarhus, Denmark (Poster). 2000. Worms 2001 Worms PM. The epidemiology of motor neuron diseases: a review of recent studies. Journal of the Neurological Sciences 2001;191(1-2):3–9. [PUBMED: 11676986] ∗ Indicates the major publication for the study Treatment for sialorrhea (excessive saliva) in people with motor neuron disease/amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Review) Copyright © 2011 The Cochrane Collaboration. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. 11 CHARACTERISTICS OF STUDIES Characteristics of included studies [ordered by study ID] Jackson 2009 Methods Randomised placebo controlled trial Participants 20 patients (11 treatment, 9 control) with MND and intractable sialorrhea refractory to at least two anticholinergic medications, aged between 21 to 85 years Interventions Treatment - botulinum toxin B injected under electromyographic guidance into parotid and submandibular glands bilaterally Control - identical injections using normal saline only Outcomes Primary - global impression of change by subject at week 8 post injection Secondary - patient and caregiver assessment of saliva thickness on VAS 0-100, thin to thick Patient and caregiver assessment of saliva problem severity on VAS 0-100, none to serious Changes in volume of saliva produced in 5 minutes, and number of times suctioned SEIQOL-DW 0-100 where higher score means better quality of life ALSFRS-R Clinician assessment of marked improvement Notes Funding from patient organisation and from pharmaceutical company. Trial described as independent in design, execution, analysis and publication from commercial funding source Risk of bias Bias Authors’ judgement Support for judgement Adequate sequence generation? Low risk Random numbers table Allocation concealment? Low risk Sequentially numbered opaque envelopes kept securely in locked cabinet. Preparation of botulinum toxin and saline injections in closed room. Treatment allocation and injection preparation by unblinded investigator who had no other contact with blinded investigators or subjects Blinding? Patient reported outcomes Unclear risk Good methodology to maintain blinding but unblinding questionnaire suggests blinding not maintained in patients, and clinicians Blinding? Objective outcomes Low risk Measurement of saliva volume produced with standard avoidance of food or drink one hour prior to assessment Treatment for sialorrhea (excessive saliva) in people with motor neuron disease/amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Review) Copyright © 2011 The Cochrane Collaboration. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. 12 Jackson 2009 (Continued) Blinding? Clinician reported outcomes Unclear risk Good methodology to maintain blinding but unblinding questionnaire suggests blinding not maintained in clinicians, and patients Blinding? Caregiver reported outcomes Unclear risk Good methodology to maintain blinding but unblinding questionnaire suggests blinding not maintained for patients; caregivers blinding not assessed but uncertain Incomplete outcome data addressed? All outcomes Low risk Free of selective reporting? Low risk Free of other bias? Low risk Characteristics of excluded studies [ordered by study ID] Study Reason for exclusion Andersen 2001 Non randomized study. Compared saliva secretion rate before and after treatment with single dose radiotherapy (7 to 7.5 Gray) delivered bilaterally to the larger part of the parotids and the posterior part of the submandibular glands. Found reduction in drooling in 16/18 MND patients. 1/18 developed xerostomia and 1 reported no effect Bhatia 1999 Non randomized study. 1/4 patients had MND, this patient had botulinum toxin 10 U injected into each parotid gland. No improvement reported Carod 2003 Non randomized study. Treated 3 patients (1 with MND, 1 Parkinson’s disease and 1 pontine stroke) with botulinum toxin A to parotid glands. Showed efficacy of injections by improvement on severity and frequency scores for sialorrhea Contarino 2007 Non randomized study. Treated patients with MND and with Parkinson’s disease. Demonstrated efficacy in reducing sialorrhea but suggested risks of procedure may be greater in MND patients Costa 2008 Non randomized study. Open label study of botulinum toxin B injected into the parotid and submandibular glands in 16 MND patients. 75% achieved the primary end point of > 50% improvement in visual analogue scale of severity and disability of sialorrhea. 15/16 patients reported some benefit in reducing saliva. Objective measures also demonstrated a 60% reduction in saliva Giess 2000 Non randomized study. Open label study treating 5 MND patients with botulinum toxin A. Demonstrated reduction in saliva production by quantifying paper handkerchief use and by salivary gland scintigraphy Treatment for sialorrhea (excessive saliva) in people with motor neuron disease/amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Review) Copyright © 2011 The Cochrane Collaboration. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. 13 (Continued) Gilio 2010 Non randomized study. Open label study of 26 MND patients with botulinum toxin type A. Demonstrated reduction in saliva production by cotton roll weight and improvement in VAS of impact of drooling on daily life Harriman 2001 Non randomized study. No information given on diagnostic criteria for MND or of patient characteristics to allow comparison of groups. No control group included. No allocation concealment, risk of bias therefore felt to be high. Study compared two radiotherapy regimens to improve sialorrhea: 8 Gray in single fraction to submandibular gland as well as sublingual and tail of parotid compared with 12.5 Gray total radiation dose in two fractions. Found 8 Gray effective in reducing sialorrhea with no benefit increasing dose to 12.5 Gray total radiation in late stage MND patients Heiman-Patterson 2001 Questionnaire survey, not randomized Levitskii 2005 Compared botulinum toxin to amitripylline. Randomisation process was not described and risk of bias was high as patients needed to purchase treatment in the study. Authors concluded that amitripylline was treatment of choice due to efficacy and low cost, but if efficacy limited by side effects, a lower dose combined with botulinum toxin can be effective Lipp 2003 Double-blind, placebo controlled study randomising patients to one of three dose regimens of botulinum toxin A. Study demonstrated objective efficacy at the higher dose of 75 MU per parotid injection, but the study was not included in the review as it was not possible to analyse the efficacy in the MND patients alone. The treatment group comprised patients with MND, Parkinson’s disease, multiple system atrophy and corticobasal degeneration Manrique 2005 Non randomized study. Open label with no control group. Botulinum toxin A 30 U for each submandibular, 20 U for each parotid gland. Found improvement in sialorrhea measured by clinical questionnaire in 4/5 MND patients followed up for one year Neppelberg 2007 Non randomized study. Open label with no control group. 14 patients received single fraction radiotherapy (7.5 Gray) and 5 patients received botulinum toxin A injections 20 U into the parotid glands, 2 of these also had radiotherapy. After radiotherapy reduction in mean salivary secretion 60% at 1 week, 51% at 2 weeks, 21% at 3 months, compared to pre-treatment. Mean salivary flow not reduced after botulinum treatment Newall 1996 Non randomized study. Treated 16 MND patients with thick secretions with oral beta antagonists. 75% showed relief with the medications Porta 2001 Non randomized study investigating botulinum toxin A injections in patients with various neurological disorders, including MND (4/10) Scott 2005 Non randomized study. Open label prospective study of 6 MND patients treated with bilateral parotid injections of botulinum toxin A, with improvement in 5/7 patients treated at a lower dose (10 U) and 3/ 4 at higher dose (20 U). Improvement was measured by measurement of tissue use Stalpers 2002 Non randomized study. Open label and retrospective. 19 patients treated with radiotherapy (prescribed 12 Gray in 2 fractions once a week). Response judged by report of patient about drooling 2 to 3 weeks after radiotherapy completed. 14/17 reported complete or partial improvement. 4 non-responders had a second course of radiotherapy, only 1 had partial benefit; 2 non- responders had a third course, no benefit. Treatment for sialorrhea (excessive saliva) in people with motor neuron disease/amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Review) Copyright © 2011 The Cochrane Collaboration. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. 14 (Continued) Side effects mild (parotid pain, mouth dryness) and temporary Verma 2006 Non randomised study. Open label with no control group. Treated 10 patients with botulinum toxin and showed improved degree of sialorrhea and drooling score Winterholler 2001 Non randomised study. Open label pilot of botulinum toxin A 12.5 U injected into each parotid and sublingual gland by transductal approach. Response measured by measuring saliva production, and technetium 99 m scintigraphy. 2/2 bulbar MND patients showed benefit. Pilot stopped due to severe adverse events (severe swelling of sublingual gland in first and worsening of dysphagia in second patient) Treatment for sialorrhea (excessive saliva) in people with motor neuron disease/amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Review) Copyright © 2011 The Cochrane Collaboration. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. 15 DATA AND ANALYSES This review has no analyses. APPENDICES Appendix 1. MEDLINE OvidSP Search Strategy 1 randomized controlled trial.pt. 2 controlled clinical trial.pt. 3 randomized.ab. 4 placebo.ab. 5 drug therapy.fs. 6 randomly.ab. 7 trial.ab. 8 groups.ab. 9 or/1-8 10 (animals not (animals and humans)).sh. 11 9 not 10 12 Sialorrhoea.mp. 13 sialorrhea.tw. or sialorrhea/ 14 (drool$ or dribbl$ or hypersalivat$).mp. 15 saliva$.tw. or saliva/ 16 salivation/ 17 dysphagia.mp. 18 Deglutition Disorder$.tw. 19 Deglutition Disorders/ 20 (swallow$ adj1 difficult$).mp. 21 or/12-20 22 exp Motor Neuron Disease/ 23 (moto$1 neuron$1 disease$1 or moto?neuron$1 disease).mp. 24 Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis.tw. 25 ((Charcot marie$1 adj5 syndrome$1) or (Lou Gehrig$1 adj5 syndrome$1)).mp. 26 ((Charcot marie$1 adj5 disease) or (Lou Gehrig$1 adj5 disease)).mp. 27 progressive bulbar palsy.tw. 28 or/22-27 29 11 and 21 and 28 Appendix 2. EMBASE OvidSP Search Strategy 1 crossover-procedure/ 2 double-blind procedure/ 3 randomized controlled trial/ 4 single-blind procedure/ 5 (random$ or factorial$ or crossover$ or cross over$ or cross-over$ or placebo$ or (doubl$ adj blind$) or (singl$ adj blind$) or assign$ or allocat$ or volunteer$).tw. 6 or/1-5 7 human/ 8 6 and 7 Treatment for sialorrhea (excessive saliva) in people with motor neuron disease/amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Review) Copyright © 2011 The Cochrane Collaboration. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. 16 9 nonhuman/ or human/ 10 6 not 9 11 8 or 10 12 sialorrhoea/ 13 (sialorrhea or sialorrhoea).tw. 14 (drool$ or dribbl$ or hypersalivat$).mp. 15 saliva$.tw. or saliva/ 16 salivation/ or salivation.tw. 17 dysphagia.mp. 18 Deglutition Disorder$.tw. or Deglutition Disorders/ 19 (swallow$ adj1 difficult$).mp. 20 or/12-19 21 exp motor neuron disease/ 22 amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.tw. 23 moto$1 neuron$1 disease$1.mp. 24 moto?neuron$1 disease$1.mp. 25 ((charcot marie$1 adj5 diseas$1) or (lou gherig$1 adj5 disease$1)).mp. 26 ((charcot marie$1 adj5 syndrome$1) or (lou gherig$1 adj5 syndrome$1)).mp. 27 progressive bulbar palsy.tw. 28 or/21-27 29 11 and 20 and 28 Appendix 3. EBSCOhost CINAHL Search Strategy S35 S34 and S29 and S18 S34 S30 or S31 or S32 or S33 S33 progressive bulbar palsy S32 amyotrophic lateral sclerosis S31 motorneuron* disease* or moto* neuron* disease* S30 (MH “Motor Neuron Diseases”) or (MH “Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis”) S29 S19 or S20 or S21 or S22 or S23 or S24 or S25 or S26 or S27 or S28 S28 drool* or dribbl* or hypersalivat* S27 swallow* difficult* S26 (MH “Deglutition Disorders”) S25 deglutition disorder* S24 dysphagia S23 (MH “Saliva”) or (MH “Salivation”) S22 saliva S21 sialorrhea S20 (MH “Sialorrhea”) S19 sialorrhoea S18 S1 or S2 or S3 or S4 or S5 or S6 or S7 or S8 or S9 or S10 or S11 or S12 or S13 or S14 or S15 or S16 or S17 S17 ABAB design* S16 TI random* or AB random* S15 ( TI (cross?over or placebo* or control* or factorial or sham? or dummy) ) or ( AB (cross?over or placebo* or control* or factorial or sham? or dummy) ) S14 ( TI (clin* or intervention* or compar* or experiment* or preventive or therapeutic) or AB (clin* or intervention* or compar* or experiment* or preventive or therapeutic) ) and ( TI (trial*) or AB (trial*) ) S13 ( TI (meta?analys* or systematic review*) ) or ( AB (meta?analys* or systematic review*) ) S12 ( TI (single* or doubl* or tripl* or trebl*) or AB (single* or doubl* or tripl* or trebl*) ) and ( TI (blind* or mask*) or AB (blind* or mask*) ) S11 PT (“clinical trial” or “systematic review”) Treatment for sialorrhea (excessive saliva) in people with motor neuron disease/amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Review) Copyright © 2011 The Cochrane Collaboration. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. 17 S10 (MH “Factorial Design”) S9 (MH “Concurrent Prospective Studies”) or (MH “Prospective Studies”) S8 (MH “Meta Analysis”) S7 (MH “Solomon Four-Group Design”) or (MH “Static Group Comparison”) S6 (MH “Quasi-Experimental Studies”) S5 (MH “Placebos”) S4 (MH “Double-Blind Studies”) or (MH “Triple-Blind Studies”) S3 (MH “Clinical Trials+”) S2 (MH “Crossover Design”) S1 (MH “Random Assignment”) or (MH “Random Sample”) or (MH “Simple Random Sample”) or (MH “Stratified Random Sample”) or (MH “Systematic Random Sample”) Appendix 4. AMED OvidSP Search Strategy 1 Randomized controlled trials/ 2 Random allocation/ 3 Double blind method/ 4 Single-Blind Method/ 5 exp Clinical Trials/ 6 (clin$ adj25 trial$).tw. 7 ((singl$ or doubl$ or treb$ or trip$) adj25 (blind$ or mask$ or dummy)).tw. 8 placebos/ 9 placebo$.tw. 10 random$.tw. 11 research design/ 12 Prospective Studies/ 13 meta analysis/ 14 (meta?analys$ or systematic review$).tw. 15 control$.tw. 16 (multicenter or multicentre).tw. 17 ((study or studies or design$) adj25 (factorial or prospective or intervention or crossover or cross-over or quasi-experiment$)).tw. 18 or/1-17 19 Sialorrhea/ 20 (sialorrhea or sialorrhoea).mp. 21 (drool$ or dribbl$ or hypersalivat$).mp. 22 saliva$.mp. or saliva/ 23 dysphagia.mp. 24 Deglutition Disorder$.tw. 25 Deglutition Disorders/ 26 (swallow$ adj1 difficult$).mp. 27 or/19-26 28 Motor Neuron Disease/ 29 moto$1 neuron$1 disease$1.mp. 30 Moto?neuron$1 Disease$1.mp. 31 Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis/ 32 amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.tw. 33 (progressive adj5 bulbar palsy).mp. 34 or/28-33 35 18 and 27 and 34 Treatment for sialorrhea (excessive saliva) in people with motor neuron disease/amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Review) Copyright © 2011 The Cochrane Collaboration. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. 18 Appendix 5. Cochrane Central Register of Controlled trials search strategy #1MeSH descriptor Motor Neuron Disease explode all trees #2“motor neuron disease” OR “motor neuron disease” OR “motoneuron disease” OR “amyotrophic lateral sclerosis” #3(Charcot NEAR syndrome*) #4(Gehrig* NEAR syndrome*) #5(Charcot NEAR diseas*) OR (Gehrig* NEAR disease*) #6(#1 OR #2 OR #3 OR #4 OR #5) #7sialorrhoea OR sialorrhea OR drool* OR dribbl* OR hypersalivat* OR saliva* OR dysphagia OR deglutition NEXT disorder* OR swallow* NEXT difficult* #8(#6 AND #7) HISTORY Protocol first published: Issue 1, 2008 Review first published: Issue 5, 2011 CONTRIBUTIONS OF AUTHORS Ms N Grundy and Dr S Sathasivam drafted the protocol and revised it following peer review. Prof CA Young, Dr C Ellis, Ms J Johnson and Dr S Sathasivam checked all abstracts, agreed a shortlist, and performed data extraction independently on shortlisted papers. Dr C Ellis and Prof CA Young wrote the tables. Prof Young wrote the paper and all authors have read and agreed the final version. DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST None SOURCES OF SUPPORT Internal sources • The Walton Centre for Neurology & Neurosurgery Neurological Disability Fund, UK. External sources • No sources of support supplied Treatment for sialorrhea (excessive saliva) in people with motor neuron disease/amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Review) Copyright © 2011 The Cochrane Collaboration. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. 19 DIFFERENCES BETWEEN PROTOCOL AND REVIEW We used updated risk of bias methodology, described in the Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions (Higgins 2008). INDEX TERMS Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis [∗ complications]; Botulinum Toxins [∗ administration & dosage]; Motor Neuron Disease [complications]; Neuromuscular Agents [∗ administration & dosage]; Parotid Gland; Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; Salivation [drug effects]; Sialorrhea [∗ drug therapy; etiology]; Submandibular Gland MeSH check words Humans Treatment for sialorrhea (excessive saliva) in people with motor neuron disease/amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Review) Copyright © 2011 The Cochrane Collaboration. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. 20