If concerns about the safety of Botox have prevented you from getting Botox treatment, you may be wondering – How safe is Botox? Botox is a popular wrinkle-smoothing treatment that can address frown lines, crow’s feet, and forehead lines.
How Does Botox Work?
Botox reduces the appearance of dynamic lines by temporarily relaxing the underlying muscles, and this smooths and softens the overlying wrinkles. Dynamic wrinkles develop because of the repeated muscle movement related to facial expressions such as smiling, squinting, and frowning.
The effects of Botox are visible about 2-3 days after treatment and last 3-6 months.
How Safe Is Botox?
Botox is generally very safe. However, just like with any other cosmetic treatment, there can be side-effects with Botox.
Possible side-effects of Botox injections include swelling, bruising, and redness. When Botox is administered by a medical professional with the appropriate training and experience, risks are minimized. Therefore, patients considering Botox should avoid inexperienced injectors.
When choosing a Botox injector, patients should take careful note of how long the provider has been administering Botox injections, and check reviews from past patients.
Why Are There Questions About Botox Safety?
Questions about the safety of Botox have been raised because the drug is made from the bacterium clostridium botulinum, which can be life-threatening in large doses. When Botox is used for cosmetic purposes, it is injected in very small doses and does not cause harmful effects for most patients.
Before gaining FDA approval for the treatment of frown lines, Botox was safely used by ophthalmologists to treat misaligned eyes (strabismus) and uncontrolled blinking (blepharospasm). Botox can also address overactive bladder, neck spasms, and excessive sweating. If you are thinking about getting botox, it’s best to go to a trained, certified injector and discuss the possible risks so that you can make an informed decision.