If you are thinking about getting Botox, but still have not done so because you don't know how Botox works, then this editorial is for you. When you are done, you will know how Botox works, what Botox does & what Botox can not do.
Botox is actually a protein. In fact, it is an little amount of an purified protein. There is absolutely no bacteria in a vial of Botox, NONE. The confusion has to do with how Botox is made. The disease, Botulism is caused by a bacteria that creates massive quantities of 7 different proteins all a the same time. These 7 proteins are labelled A, B, C, D, E, F & G. Only the A & B proteins have any medical use. When Botox is created, the "A" protein is extracted, purified & exactly measured. A vial of Botox has about five billionths of a gram of this highly purified protein. When the doctor gets the vial of Botox, it actually looks empty. Water is added to the vial so that the protein can be drawn in to a syringe & injected.
So what happens when the Botox is injected? The Botox spreads about one cm. Any spread beyond one cm is so little that it's small chance of doing anything at all. The protein is then absorbed in to the nerves that are within one cm of the injection site. Over the next 15 minutes, the Botox protein, now inside the nerve, finds another protein called a SNAP-25, attaches to it, & dissolves it. In the method of doing so, the Botox itself dissolves. In other words, after 15 minutes, the Botox is GONE.
At this point, the nerve is still alive & well, but it's lost most of it is SNAP-25 proteins. Without SNAP-25 proteins, the nerve does not know how to speak to the muscle. The muscle is perfectly fine, but it is not getting any messages from the nerve. So, they both sit there & do nothing. It takes about three months for the nerve to make new SNAP-25 proteins. That is why the Botox seems to last for about three months. Keep in mind, the Botox disappears in about 15 minutes. The period of the effect is based on how long it takes for those nerves to make new SNAP-25 proteins.
Notice that I did not even mention skin or wrinkles when speaking about how Botox works. That is because Botox does NOTHING to skin. Botox only works on the muscles underneath the skin, not the skin itself. That is why Botox won't get rid of deep wrinkles in your skin. It relaxes the muscles so your skin is not being moved around as much. The wrinkles that appear when you move your muscles will disappear quickly. In case you keep getting retreated with the Botox without letting it wear off between treatments, even the deep wrinkles will start to get better because the skin is not being folded over & over again.
In summary, Botox is a protein that dissolves another protein called SNAP-25 which exists inside the nerves. The shortage of SNAP-25 proteins prevents the nerve from speaking to the muscles which causes the muscles to relax. The wrinkle reduction is due to the muscles not moving as much as normal. The Botox itself does nothing to the skin.
In case you would like to have Botox in the West Palm Beach Florida or Palm Beach County area, give us a call at 561-795-7546 (SKIN) or 561-88-BOTOX. Ask us about or "Leader of the Pack" deal where you & your friends can get massive discounts!