BOTOX® Cosmetic: Botox Injections New York City

BOTOX® Cosmetic must be injected. In its raw form BOTOX® Cosmetic is produced in nature by the bacterium Clostridium botulinum when the bacterium is deprived of oxygen. Raw botulinum toxin contains a mixture of subtypes. The manufacturer purifies subtype A and crystalizes it onto human albumin to make BOTOX® Cosmetic.

When used in medical settings as an injectable form of sterile, purified botulinum toxin, small doses of the toxin are injected into the affected muscles and block the release of the chemical acetylcholine that would otherwise signal the muscle to contract. The toxin thus paralyzes or weakens the injected muscle.

Eventually, the nerve ending regenerates, and the muscle regains its previous strength. This is why injections of BOTOX® Cosmetic wear off and have to be repeated.

What BOTOX® Cosmetic Can Improve

BOTOX® Cosmetic works best on the upper third of the face. Forehead furrows, glabellar frown lines (between the eyebrows), and lines around the eyes (“crow's feet”) nearly always respond favorably to BOTOX® Cosmetic.

Precautions

Serious complications of BOTOX® Cosmetic injections do not occur frequently.  Troubling side effects are infrequent and nearly always wear off. From cosmetic injections, the most common adverse effect is a slight unevenness of the face. However, this can be corrected with a “touch up” re-injection. In about one in a thousand cases, temporary drooping of the eyelid or double vision results.