What is a BOTOX® Injection?

"BOTOX® injection" or "botox shot" is the term most widely used to describe the procedure of adminstering the Allergan BOTOX® Cosmetic treatement. BOTOX® injections utilize Botulinum Toxin Type A to treat wrinkles. BOTOX® Injections were originally slated to treat neurological disorders; today, BOTOX® injections are widely used to remove facial lines, especially frown lines, "crow's feet," and forehead lines.

"BOTOX® treatments", or "BOTOX® injection treatments" are a therapeutic muscle-relaxing agent that works at motor nerve endings (nerves that lead to muscles). BOTOX®® Cosmetic is a drug used for the temporary improvement in the appearance of moderate to severe glabellar lines (frown lines). These frown lines come from muscles called corrugator and/or procerus muscles. The BOTOX® injection treatment is the name used for the process of injecting the BOTOX® Cosmetic product into the patient.

BOTOX® injection treatments were approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for cosmetic use in April 2002. (It has been approved for the treatment of several medical conditions since 1989.) BOTOX® is a trade name for botulinum toxin A. BOTOX® is related to botulism.

BOTOX® injection treatments are successfully used to treat blepharospasm and strabismus, and BOTOX® treatments are also proven useful in treating cervical dystonia -- these are all conditions that in some way involve spasms, involuntary muscle contractions. Within a few hours to a couple of days after the botulinum toxin is injected into the affected muscle(s), the spasms or contractions are reduced or eliminated altogether. The effects of BOTOX® treatments are not permanent, reportedly lasting anywhere from three to eight months. By injecting the toxin directly into a certain muscle or muscle group, the risk of the BOTOX® injection treatments spreading to other areas of the body is greatly diminished.

When BOTOX® -- botulinum toxin A -- is injected into the muscles surrounding the eyes, for instance, those muscles can not "scrunch up" for a period of time. They are paralyzed. So the wrinkles in that area, often referred to as "crow's-feet," temporarily go away.

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