You may have seen advertisements for Botox Cosmetic on blogs and in celebrity gossip magazines or heard about it from friends. However, there are numerous misconceptions about Botox treatment and the way it is administered.
Since the FDA approved Botox Cosmetic in 2002, it has been available by prescription within the U.S. The FDA approved the identical Botox injection for medical purposes (such as uncontrolled muscle spasms) in 1989.
Botox Cosmetic
Botox is employed to treat three conditions: muscle spasms, excessive underarm perspiration, and cosmetic enhancement. Botox Cosmetic can also be considered a temporary treatment for “frown lines,” the wrinkles between your brows which will cause you to look weary, sad, or furious.
It is FDA-approved for this purpose and solely for this purpose. Horizontal forehead lines, crow’s feet, marionette lines at the corners of the mouth, and smoker’s lines around the lips are all common off-label uses.
Botox Cosmetic is not to be confused with injectable fillers. Restylane, Radiesse, and Juvéderm are samples of dermal fillers that function by plumping up tissues to cut back or eliminate creases and wrinkles.
Your practitioner can assist you in determining which products will best address your specific aesthetic concerns. Nonetheless, Botox is often utilized within the top portion of the face, while fillers are utilized in other locations.
Are You a Good Botox Candidate?
Botox Cosmetic has been approved by the FDA within the U.S. for adults aged 18 to 65. You must not use it, though, if you:
- Are allergic to any of the Botox or Botox Cosmetic ingredients
- Are allergic to a different brand of neurolysin (such as Myobloc, Xeomin, or Dysport), or have ever had an adverse reaction to one of those products
- In the injection region, you have got a skin infection or another problem.
- You have been diagnosed with ALS (Lou Gehrig’s disease), myasthenia, Eaton-Lambert syndrome, or another muscle or nerve condition
- Have respiratory issues, like asthma
- Having trouble swallowing
- Have a bleeding problem
- Preparing for surgery
- Have undergone facial surgery
- have muscles on the forehead
- Have droopy eyelids
- Taking or have recently stopped taking any drugs, vitamins, or supplements.
Cosmetic botox is unlikely to travel far enough through the body to harm a fetus or a nursing newborn. Clinical investigations on expecting or new moms have not been in deep trouble for ethical reasons; thus, nobody is certain, of course. As a result, the manufacturer (Allergan) recommends that Botox injections be avoided if you are planning or trying to conceive a baby, are pregnant, or are presently breastfeeding.
Botox Injections and the Way They Work
Botox is not recommended for facial wrinkles that appear while your face is totally relaxed. Dermal fillers are superior at managing these lines. Botox can often “soften” these lines, but it does not always eliminate them.
The injections will take roughly 10 minutes, and there will be no downtime. Normally, you would notice a difference after some days. Botox takes two to four days to stick to the nerve endings that ordinarily stimulate muscular contractions. In most cases, the maximum effect happens after 10-14 days. As a result, the effect acquired 2 weeks after the injection should be considered the maximum effect.
Is Botox a Painful Procedure?
Any injection may be painful, but Botox injections use very thin needles, so pain is typically minimal. 10-20 minutes before the injections, the area is often treated with a topical anesthetic or a cold pack, so you will not feel much pain. Once the anesthetic cream wears off, you will experience some discomfort.
What Is the Recommended Frequency of Botox Injections?
The majority notice effects within three to four months; however, this might vary depending on a variety of factors:
- Results may fade faster in older adults with less muscle tone than in younger, firmer face muscles.
- The shape of the face and the expressions often created
- Smoking
- Eating habits.
- Undergoing facials, microdermabrasion, or other resurfacing procedures
- Sun exposure
- Some people get a longer-lasting impact with repeated use, while others appear to develop resistance to the drugs and need more frequent treatments.
In any case, having injections in the same injection site (such as for crow’s feet) more frequently than every three months is not recommended. Your body’s immune system can produce antibodies to the treatment, making it less effective or perhaps causing an allergy to the drug, just as it can with any other injection. The more frequently a medicine is injected, or the greater the amount injected, the greater the chance of antibodies forming against it.
