ABSTRACT
Transitioning young people from paediatric health services to adult-based healthcare systems is an internationally renowned challenge. This is even greater within the field of neurodisability, due to the presence of multi-professional involvement. An additional important factor is that pure spasticity is an infrequent finding in the paediatric population transitioning to adult spasticity management services. Many cases will present with a combination of spasticity, dystonia and rigidity, with a fairly common predominance of dystonia. Young people with intrathecal baclofen (ITB) pumps are one group in which it is absolutely essential to have smooth transition processes between paediatric and adult services. Secondly, the young person is likely to require follow-up with multiple services – orthopaedic, spinal, gastroenterology, respiratory and multidisciplinary tone management, including managing the ITB pump, as well as wider therapy support. For young people with spasticity, moving from paediatric services to the adult healthcare setting can be extremely daunting for both them and their families.
