Botox®
What Botox® is and what is it used for?
Botox® is a muscle relaxant that is injected into the muscles or deep into the skin.
It works by partially blocking the nerve impulses to any muscles that have been injected and reduces excessive contractions of these muscles.
Botox® is used to control the persistent muscle activity causing lines and wrinkles in adults up until the age of 65.
Botox® has some common application sites:
Horizontal forehead lines Glabella frown lines Lateral Canthal lines (commonly called Crows feet)
"Eye brow lift" Temporal brow lift
"Face lift" Facial asymmetry
"Smokers face lines" Upper lip wrinkling (smokers lines)
"Nose correction" Nasolabial folds
"Neck augmentation treatments" Treatment of the ageing neck
Gummy smile
Botox® also has clinical application and it is often used to treat:
Migraines
Hyperhidrosis
What are the benefits of using this treatment?
The first benefit is that “dynamic” wrinkles that appear while you are moving your face, such as when you frown, are softened. The biggest advantage however to Botox® is its ability to remove wrinkles within 2 weeks and if post procedure protocol is followed there are limited side effects.
The effects from Botox® will last three to six months. As muscle action gradually returns, the lines and wrinkles begin to re-appear and wrinkles need to be re-treated. The lines and wrinkles often appear less severe with time because the muscles are being trained to relax.
Procedure
Your skin type, skin thickness and degree of wrinkling all play a role in determining whether these injections are effective for you. The number of injections needed depends on many factors, including your facial features, the extent of the wrinkling and the specific area being treated.
The doctor will inject, using a fine gauge needle, directly into the muscle causing limited pain. Results begin to show in a couple of days and develop gradually over the course of two weeks.
Post care (after treatment)
The aesthetic effect of Botox® last for an average of 3 – 4 months but will vary depending on the condition of the skin, area treated, amount of product injected, injection technique and lifestyle factors such as sun exposure, intense exercising and smoking.
After treatment:
Alternative Treatments
There are countless anti-ageing treatment options available to the public. There are no real alternative treatments to Botulinum toxin type A, but for similar results, some substitute treatments can include: