The uses of botox seem to be increasing all the time but despite all the hype over its use, there is still a great deal of ignorance about how it achieves the results it does. But to understand exactly what Botox is and what it does, we first have to look at just how this amazing miracle of modern science came to be.

Botox is derived from Botulinum toxin, discovered nearly five decades ago and was tested for use as a treatment for disorders of the mind. It wasn’t until around 1989 that the Federal Drug Administration agreed to allow its use in medical procedures to help people with disorders of the eye like those that cause uncontrollable blinking and crossed eyes.

Then later in the first year of the new millennium after many more years of research, it was granted permission to be used on patients with contractions in the upper back and shoulder and neck area plus another eye disorder. Scientists found that if the drug was injected into the lines between the eyebrows it would gradually soften them and make them disappear so after tests, in 2002 the FDA allowed it to be used for the first cosmetic enhancement and botox had a new field of use.

Spasmodic Torticolis And Botox...

Now botox is injected into a number of areas, one of which is the forehead to help lessen the effect of years of the muscles here causing frown lines to appear. With continued use, the frown lines in most instances will completely vanish but the same effect can be found in lines at the sides of the eyes, mouth and other forehead lines.

Botulinum toxin can be deadly and at the very least make us unwell but when it is used in cosmetic procedures, the form used is one that has been cleaned up and diluted, posing no threat. The popularity of botox is due to the fact that we all have wrinkles and lines when we smile, laugh and make other facial gestures which are the result of muscles in the face.

When we are young and our skin is more elastic, these lines do not show but as we age the constant sue of facial muscles leaves us with lines and whilst many manufacturers have tried to produce creams that can get rid of these wrinkles and creases, unsuccessfully, botox can, at least for a short period. These injections are used directly into the muscles that control facial expressions, paralyzing them for a short period effectively making it almost impossible for someone to smile for example but the fact that facial expressions are reduced can give the effect of a doll like appearance.

Because frown line, wrinkles and facial creases have all but disappeared, it provides the user with a look of someone much younger. Botox treatments are still costly though with some single injections costing in the low to high hundreds of dollars.

As a recent form of cosmetic enhancement it may be some time before the full facts about long term botox use will be known but for now, most people really aren’t that concerned.

Spasmodic Torticolis And Botox

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