In 2012 Botox was the top nonsurgical cosmetic procedure in the USA amongst both men and women: 3,257,913 injections were performed by physicians. Men received 10.5 % of these.
Botox is Botulinum toxin A and a nonsurgical treatment used for a wide range of indications like: wrinkles, excessive sweating, migraines, spasticity, dystonia, squint and blepharospasm to name but a few.
Cosmetically speaking the main indications are wrinkles on the face and botox is highly effective to this end. Botox lasts for about 4 months and the peak effect occurs about 2 weeks after it being injected. There are some patients in whom the results will be better: younger skin, well taken care of skin, less sun damaged skin as well as non-smokers. Repeated injections of botox also have better effects with time. There are a certain percentage of people who do develop a type of resistance to the injections. It is also not advisable to repeat botox before 3 months.
There are some reasons not to take Botox, such as previous reaction to it or products like it (Myobloc or Dysport). Also ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease), Myasthenia gravis, Lambert-Eaton syndrome or another disease that affects your muscles or nerves. Do not use it if you have bleeding issues, plan to undergo surgery, have had facial surgery or have weakness in your forehead muscles or drooping eyelids. Also do not use it if you have an infection at the site of injection. Other very good reasons not to use it are pregnancy or wanting to fall pregnant as well as breastfeeding.
There are side effects though the most common are bruising/bleeding at the site of injection, inflammation and swelling can also occur. An allergic reaction is possible so any itching, wheezing, rash or dizziness should be reported immediately.
It is very important to adhere to instructions post injection such as not exercising for the following 4 hours, having a sleep/lying down, drinking copious amounts of alcohol. It is a very bad idea to have botox at someone's house or house party and only administration by a medical practitioner is considered safe use of the drug.
Botox is not filler. Filler is what Angelina Jolie has in her lips. Fillers work differently and plump up tissues to get rid of wrinkles or as in the case of lips plump them up.
Botox has been used now for more than 50 years and has had more safety trials done on it than any other drug. Thus safety is not in question. It is however vital to use this drug in the correct setting, for the correct indication and in the correct dose.
Exciting other uses for the drug includes excessive sweating (underarms) and this can be revolutionary for someone suffering hyperhydrosis. New research in Australia by neurologists has shown success with botox in multiple sclerosis patients. There is as yet no registered permission to use it as yet but hopefully as research becomes evident this will transpire. Other interesting research is looking at how botox works and the development of diabetes and seeing how to reverse or stop diabetes from happening.
Knowledge is always key and so too with something like Botox. Wrinkles are not the end of the world but they can be a thing of the past.
Article supplied by Dr Claudine Lee, for more information or to book a consultation with Dr Lee, call 033 343 2243.