BOTOX® Cosmetic IS PLACED DIRECTLY INTO THE FROWN MUSCLE between the eyebrows and within 24-72 hours usually causes these muscles to relax. This prevents the patient from having a deeply furrowed brow. When we frown for any reason, we gather the tissue between our eyebrows into a fold. In some of us this causes a chronic furrow. This produces a frustrated, discouraged, angry look on our face. This can be distracting to others and a bother to ourselves.

NOW YOU CAN ELIMINATE THESE FROWN LINES without surgery and without scars by a simple treatment with BOTOX® Cosmetic. The frown line between the eyebrows is caused by the action of a muscle called the corrugator. You can feel this as a thickening just below the inside of your eyebrows when you purposefully make yourself frown.

PLACING BOTOX® Cosmetic DIRECTLY into this corrugator muscle stops your ability to draw your eyebrows together when you frown. Once the muscle has been treated it cannot contract and the frown line gradually fades away. As a side benefit, patients who suffer from tension headaches due to this deep muscle contraction may find these headaches relieved.

BOTOX® Cosmetic IS ALSO USED TO TREAT CROW'S FEET beside the eyes. The agent is placed with a tiny needle into the muscles beside the eyes which are responsible for squint lines which we call "crow's feet."

IT TAKES ONLY A FEW MINUTES to perform and the effect is seen within a few days. With time the treatment gradually wears off (usually over three to five months) and re-treatments may be necessary as frown lines begin to reappear. The treatment itself is quick and easy and requires no anesthetic although a topical anesthetic cream may be used. In time patients who receive repeated treatments may need less treatment because their facial muscles retrain themselves not to frown.

LOCAL EFFECTS seen are related to the local injection of the solution. A small bruise may occur at the site of the injection. There are no reports of damage to the eye and no permanent side effects from the use of BOTOX® Cosmetic. Approximately 1% of patients may develop a slight lowering or ptosis of one eyelid. This is temporary and may not even be noticed by the patient.

BEFORE & AFTER BOTOX® Cosmetic: Avoid aspirin-containing products for 2 weeks before treatment and afterwards. Immediately after treatment remain upright for the next 4 hours and do not touch the area treated.

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BOTOX® IS A TRADE NAME for Botulism Toxin Type A. It has been used since 1980 for the treatment of strabismus (lazy eye) and blepharospasm (uncontrolled eye blinking). The use of BOTOX® Cosmetic for forehead wrinkles was pioneered in 1989 by Dr. Carruthers of Vancouver. A major study of this technique was completed in 1995 and a review was published in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology.

BOTOX® is a registered trademark of Allergan, Inc.