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How Long Will Results From Botox Last?

Wrinkles and fine lines, some of the first signs of aging, can be an unwelcomed presence in the skin and can affect a person’s confidence in both social and work contexts. Botox, an affordable treatment option available here at Burt & Will Plastic Surgery and Dermatology at our Plainfield, Morris, and Burr Ridge locations, offers a solution to these types of issues by both preventing and correcting them while revitalizing the skin.

Many of our patients choose to have regular treatments to maintain their youthful appearance, while others prefer to have it done more sporadically as needed. Regardless of which scenario you prefer, here’s what this therapy offers and how long you can expect the results to last.

How Long Will Results From Botox Last?

While everybody’s bodies are different, most patients can expect the effects of Botox to last anywhere between three to six months, at which point retreatments will be needed to maintain these effects. As you return for additional treatments, you may start to notice the effects lasting for much longer durations after the first few years. This is a common scenario for many long-time patients, as the muscles can become more responsive to the medication and less hyperactive over time.

Your diet and metabolism, as well as daily exercise routines, can also play a role in the duration of effects. This treatment is temporary because the medication is broken down and removed from the body as time passes, so anything that affects your metabolism has the potential to shorten or prolong the effects.

How Does Botox Therapy Work?

Botox is a minimally invasive neuromuscular blocker that can reduce lines and wrinkles or prevent them from forming. It gets its name from a neurotoxin called botulinum toxin, which can occur in nature but is also regularly made in labs for medicinal purposes. Many wrinkles and lines form in the face over time due to both muscle contractions and a gradual reduction in collagen production.

These wrinkles and fine lines can be treated with botulinum toxin injections, which prevent muscles from contracting while also increasing collagen production. This therapy is quick, often taking less than a few minutes for each injection, and can be performed regularly to maintain results over time. It’s also a highly precise form of therapy where we can specifically target only the areas you’d like treated while leaving other nearby areas untreated.

What Is an Ideal Age to Start Treatments?

Botox has received FDA approval for patients 18 years of age and older, though lines and wrinkles typically don’t appear in the skin in those younger than 30. However, many patients opt for treatments in their mid to late 20s, as this can be an optimal time to prevent wrinkles and lines before they appear.

So, the age you start treatment depends on whether you prefer to take a preventative or corrective approach. Even in older age, this therapy can prevent future wrinkles while minimizing or correcting those that are already present.

How Many Times Can You Get It?

Because this therapy is not a permanent solution, you’ll likely need regular touch-ups to maintain results over time, though how often you return for follow-up treatments is entirely your choice. Some of our patients prefer to take a more preventative approach by scheduling regular appointments every three months. This is because Botox is known for wearing off within this timeframe for most patients, though it has been shown to last longer in some cases, particularly after years of regular treatments.

Others prefer to take a wait-and-monitor approach where they’ll monitor their skin on a daily basis until they notice that the medication is wearing off, at which point they’ll schedule an appointment for follow-up treatment. While this works perfectly for those who are looking to correct wrinkles while maintaining results, it may not be as effective as a preventive approach to stop future wrinkles from forming.

What to Expect Your First Time

Consultation

Before you begin treatment there will be an initial consultation, which allows us to assess the muscles associated with any lines or wrinkles you’d like treated. Based on muscle tone and the size of each area, we can come up with an individualized plan for treatment so that every muscle receives the most optimal dosage.

Treatment

The treatment itself normally takes less than 15 minutes. To treat larger muscles or those with significant tone, we will normally inject the solution into multiple locations. You shouldn’t experience any pain, as we use tiny, small-gauge needles for the injections as well as a mild antiseptic cleanser just beforehand.

Aftercare

After treatment, you’ll want to avoid lying down or touching your face, as both can spread the medication to other areas of the face. This can weaken its effectiveness in the muscles and areas where it’s needed the most.

Follow-Up

To assess how well your muscles are responding, we can schedule a follow-up appointment for four to six weeks after the initial one. This gives us a chance to determine if more units are needed and if you still have any remaining lines or wrinkles in the targeted areas.

What Can It Treat?

This therapy is highly effective in the treatment of issues that come about from aging, which leads to a reduction in collagen production. However, there are many different types of wrinkles and fine lines on the face, and not all are caused by aging. The following are some of the more common types and their causes:

Expression Lines

Muscle contractions from facial expressions can cause these lines and wrinkles to appear. They can become more noticeable or permanent when a gradual loss of collagen due to aging prevents the skin from returning to a smoother, more relaxed state.

Sleep Lines

These are lines that can develop over time from sleeping on the same side of your face every night, which are caused by pressure between your face and your pillow.

Gravitational Folds

These wrinkles, known as gravitational folds, are called such because the skin can start to droop and sag over time as it loses elasticity, leading to prominent creases wherever this occurs.

Among these, expression lines are the types that respond best to this treatment. If you have other types, we can explore other options if it’s determined during the initial assessment that this therapy isn’t suitable for you.

How Safe Is This Treatment?

Compared to other options for treating lines and wrinkles, this therapy is considered to be safe for many reasons. Unlike surgery, it’s minimally invasive and only involves small pinprick injections using microneedles, with no sedatives and no downtime afterward. Because the results typically last about three to six months, it’s also not as long-lasting or as permanent as most types of cosmetic surgery.

Although it involves the use of neurotoxins, only tiny amounts are used, which means that it’s a very precise approach that doesn’t normally affect any untreated areas of the face or body. Also, the most commonly treated issues, like crow’s feet, forehead lines, and worry lines, are all approved for treatment by the FDA.

Will Botox Make Me Look Different?

As the effects of this treatment are temporary and normally wear off after several months for most of our patients, it won’t fundamentally change the way you look like dermal fillers and surgeries do. While it can relax muscles, which can soften wrinkles by reducing muscle tone, these changes normally don’t last and additional treatments will be needed to maintain these results.

Schedule Your Appointment

Botox can be an extremely effective treatment to reduce the visible signs of aging, and it can be safely and professionally administered here in our office in a comfortable environment. So if wrinkles or fine lines are affecting your self-esteem or if you simply want to get a head start on preventing them before they show up, contact us today at Burt & Will Plastic Surgery and Dermatology at any of our Morris or Burr Ridge locations or at our Limelight Medspa location in Plainfield.

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