Botox® by Frederick Dermatology – Frederick Dermatology

What is Botox®?

When you smile, laugh, frown, or look puzzled, you contract the muscles of your face. Over time, these contractions produce permanent furrows and deep wrinkles in the skin, especially around the eyes and mouth, between the eyebrows, and on the forehead. These lines can make you look older, sad, angry or tired. Botox Cosmetic treatments can not only prevent you from deepening these lines during natural facial movements, they can also erase these marks of aging, leaving you looking younger and more refreshed.

What can Botox® treatments do for me?

Through a series of tiny injections, Botox gives you a rejuvenated look by smoothing crow’s feet beneath the eyes, frown lines between the eyebrows, horizontal lines across the forehead, worry lines around the mouth, and lines on the neck. In addition to smoothing out fine lines and wrinkles, Botox may be useful for treating migraine headaches, excessive sweating, chronic back and jaw pain, and muscle spasms. Furthermore, one can receive Botox to achieve an excellent brow lift without surgical intervention.

How does Botox® work?

The medication relaxes the muscles in the face that cause wrinkles. When injected in small doses in specific areas, Botox injections block nerve muscles responsible for the repetitive actions that cause fine lines and wrinkles. In this way, Botox smooths the lines in the skin that make you look tired or angry.

What can I expect at the time of procedure?

Using a very fine needle, a qualified physician will inject Botox Cosmetic into designated muscles in your face that are causing lines and wrinkles. At Frederick Dermatology Associates, all providers have extensive training in Botox injections. Moreover, all providers take additional classes to keep updated on new advanced techniques.

Does Botox® hurt?

You may experience brief, mild discomfort during the injection, but you can be assured that the treatment is very safe and effective. Some patients say it feels like acupuncture, some say the [preparation] ice hurts more than the needles. Botox in the crow’s feet (eye wrinkles) hardly hurts at all. Botox in the frown lines is a little bit more painful. Topical anesthetic can be used to numb the skin beforehand, but most people don’t bother with it.

How long will it take to see my Botox® results and how long will they last?

Taking only a few minutes, Botox treatment requires no anesthetic and recovery is immediate, allowing you to return to work and resume your normal daily activities that same day. You will see your wrinkles begin to fade within 24 hours, with continued improvement over the next 4 weeks. The effects of BotoxCosmetic typically last up to four months, although many have reported results lasting up to a full year. After several Botox treatments, the results may be prolonged.

What should I do after my Botox® injections?

Frederick Dermatology Associates has several recommendations to ensure safe, optimized results. Some of these include, moving or exercising the muscles injected several times per hour for 4 hours after the procedure. This allows the Botox to gain is best uptake into the muscles intended for relaxing. This may allow the onset of Botox to occur more quickly and for the duration to last longer. You also want to avoid lying down or any excessive bending over. This theoretically avoids the unwanted side effect of ptosis (dropping) of eyebrow or eyelid.

What are the side effects of Botox®?

Immediately following the Botox treatment, some patients may experience mild bruising, which will go away shortly. Side effects of Botox Cosmetic are rare and are usually mild and temporary. The most common side effects caused by Botox are headaches and temporary redness or bruising of the skin at the site of injection. In rare cases, slight drooping of an eyelid or asymmetry of expression may occur. Any risk of complication can be reduced by choosing a qualified and experienced physician.

Is Botox® safe?

Botox Cosmetic was FDA-approved in 2002 and has been used in millions of U.S. patients. The protein is purified and this process occurs under sterile conditions and is reconstituted from a freeze-dried powder prior to injection.

What is the difference between Botox®, Dysport® and Xeomin®?

Botox, Dysport, and Xeomin are very identical in their nature, but have slight differences in the chemical form due to purification differences. Dysport offers enhanced spreading and may be the ideal choice for treatment of multiple areas of the face Botox is an excellent choice for deep wrinkline All three are FDA approved and safe choices for wrinkle reduction and more!

The importance of choosing a qualified physician

Even though Botox is not a surgical procedure, it is very important to choose a highly experienced and qualified physician when deciding to undergo Botox treatments. Doctors who are less familiar with the technique could leave you looking “frozen” or perpetually surprised. Our doctors in Frederick, MD are intimately familiar with Botox Cosmetic, having successfully treated hundreds of patients at our office. Not only that, we also take the time to talk with each candidate before beginning the injections to find out what he or she wants to achieve and to determine how best to correct their problem area(s), so patients can be happy again with their smoother, younger-looking skin.