Botox, Dysport & Xeomin

Neurotoxin (Botox, Dysport and Xeomin) treatments are the most popular single safe cosmetic procedure, that are mainly used to smooth dynamic wrinkles, or those wrinkles that form as a result of facial movements like frowning, squinting, smiling, and other expressions we tend to make day after day. Beauty Philosophy Medical Aesthetics offers safe and FDA approved injections for wrinkle management. The effects of Botox are typically visible within 3-5 days of the injections, and continue to improve until the final result around days 10-14.

The areas that can be treated:

  • Frown area – one of the facial expressions that can make you look angry or grumpy when you’re not

  • Forehead area – one of the largest muscles on the face. It is responsible for raising the eyebrows and creating those ‘corrugated’ wrinkles on the forehead

  • Eye area – there are 2 circular muscles around the eyes very similar to the one around the mouth. They create the ‘scrunched’ look around the eyes when we squint to form what is commonly called ‘crow’s feet’.

  • Nose area – there are muscles around the nose that form a ‘snarling’ expression creating what we commonly call ‘bunny lines’ across the bridge of the nose.

  • Chin area – there are a couple of concerns that can occur on the chin area. One is the ‘chin crease’ which is a horizontal wrinkle almost separating the chin from the lower lip area and the other is chin dimpling usually seen with sucking movements.

  • Lip and mouth area – there is one large circular muscle around the mouth which creates a pursed movement to form vertical lip wrinkles on the upper and lower lip.

  • Marionette area – there are muscles that pull the corner of the mouth down to create a ‘down-turned’ smile and deep grooves that run from the corner of the mouth to the jawline.

There are also muscles on the face, neck and chest that can be injected to change the shape of the face to create a ‘lifting effect’ on the lower face, jawline and corners of the mouth as well as raising the outer portion of the eyebrows. These treatments are covered in the section NON SURGICAL FACIAL RESHAPING.

BOTULINUM TOXIN A (BTXA) INJECTIONS

AFTERCARE INSTRUCTIONS

 You have just had a treatment with BTXA (Botulinum Toxin A) a short-term muscle relaxant. It takes 2-3 days for BTXA to begin taking effect and up to 10-14 days to see the full effect (these times will vary from person to person and treatment to treatment, being dependent upon several metabolic factors).

While each muscle area slowly responds to the BTXA treatment, you may notice some apparent asymmetry or unevenness in movement (ie ability to raise one eyebrow higher than the other or more wrinkles on one side of forehead than the other). This should even out over a 7-14 day period. Occasionally this unevenness persists past 14 days where the muscle in an area treated is stronger than expected. If this occurs, contact the clinic for an appointment as further BTXA may be required to relax those muscles and give an even effect in the area treated.

Possible post treatment effects from BTXA treatments:

  • Slight redness, bruising or swelling at the injection sites which will resolve spontaneously;

  • Mild headache and local tenderness – May last 48 hours and may require pain killing medication.

  • Altered position of the eyebrow (raised, flattened or different position from other eyebrow) – in some circumstances, your therapist can correct or improve this by injecting further units. However, this effect may also settle over 2-3 weeks without the need for intervention.

  • Drooping of the upper eyelid (eyelid ptosis) – caused by a small amount of BTXA moving into the muscle of the upper eyelid, very rare (approx. 1 in 5000 patients). This may be a result of failure to follow the aftercare instructions given to you by your therapist eg inadvertently rubbing the area injected - so please strictly follow your post care instructions. It may be improved with eye drops in some circumstances but it will resolve spontaneously without any intervention.

  • Heaviness of the eyebrows – occurs in some older patients because of the poor tone of their muscle. A lower dose may be injected to prevent this from happening and a further treatment required within 2-4 weeks to achieve the desired result.

  • Very rarely, after several treatments, some patients become resistant to the drug i.e. it no longer works effectively due to the development of antibodies against the BTXA.

Remember that the effects of BTXA are temporary. Any adverse effects that occur WILL completely wear off over a few weeks. It is vitally important to follow ALL aftercare instructions FULLY following this treatment. Please note that refunds will not be given in regards to BTXA treatments. Please contact your therapist if you have any concerns.

The following instructions will maximize the benefit of this treatment and reduce the possibility of any complication:

  • Maximize facial activity for half an hour after treatment by frowning and squinting to attract the BTXA to the muscle

  • If there are any bruises present at the injection sites ice can be applied after the treatment but be gentle and DO NOT rub the ice over the skin. Bruising is not common and usually it is mild lasting 2-3 days but very rarely a bruise can occur that lasts up to 10 days. This is usually due to blood thinning medications/supplements/alcohol or due to other health issues or failure to follow aftercare instructions.

  • Gentle cleansing of the area is not a problem if gentle patting is used but DO NOT massage or rub the area treated for 24 hours.  

  • Do not exfoliate the area injected for 24 hours.

  • If makeup is applied in the 24 hours following treatment it should preferably be in powder form, applied gently with a brush. If a liquid makeup is applied, then ‘pat’ the makeup onto the skin.

  • Avoid lying down for 3-4 hours.

  • Avoid lying face down eg on massage table for 24 hours.

  • Avoid wearing any accessories (eg hats, sunglasses) that may rub the area treated for 24 hours.

  • Avoid hot water - use tepid water to wash the face for 24 hours.

  • Do not work out at the gym or undertake strenuous exercise for 24 hours.

  • Avoid excess sun exposure, solariums, saunas and hot spas for 24 hours.

  • Avoid caffeine, hot drinks, alcohol, blood thinning products (eg ibuprofen, aspirin, Vit E, fish oils, krill oil, glucosamine) for 24 hrs.

The effect from BTXA lasts 2-5 months depending on the individual. The results will wear off progressively from around 3 months and you will need to repeat the injections 2 - 5 times a year to maintain the results.

BTXA is a metabolized product. Therefore, the result and the duration of that result is entirely related to YOUR body’s metabolism and is not guaranteed by Beauty Philosophy Medical Aesthetics. Your cosmetic practitioner will advise you of the number of BTXA units required to achieve the best result according to your expectations.

 It is important that you contact your cosmetic practitioner after 14 days if there is any unevenness or if there is any unwanted residual muscle movement. This can be corrected by a further BTXA correctional treatment or an increase in BTXA units (in most cases only a few units of BTXA is required). Please note that NO correctional treatments will be done prior to the 14 days to avoid over dosing the area and increased risks of eyelid ptosis/uneven eyebrow position. All further units of BTXA injected after the initial treatment will be charged at the usual rate.

At the next treatment, your cosmetic practitioner will advise you of the TOTAL number of BTXA units is required to achieve the best result according to your expectations at one treatment (eg 16 units of BTXA advised = 10 units injected at 1st treatment + 6 units injected at correctional treatment).