CTU Bern

The BISS trial: Recruitment now open!

Botox Instead of Strabismus Surgery

Today a majority of patients who suffer from a large angle ocular misalignment require a surgical intervention to regain binocular vision. Many of those surgeries are made during childhood. Strabismus surgery has a high success rate and few complications, but it requires anesthesia of about 45 minutes and makes future surgeries less predictable and technically more difficult.

Instead of surgery, botulinum toxin (Botox) can be used to treat acquired large angle esotropia. A Botox intervention requires an anesthesia duration of approximately 5 minutes, it may be associated with less scarring, less postoperative discomfort and leaves surgical options open. On the other hand, current evidence on the use of Botox in strabismus is incoherent and poorly supported by basic research findings.

The goal of the study is to test whether surgery can be avoided by using a Botox-treatment.