General Information About BOTOX®

BOTOX® Cosmetic, from the pharmaceutical company Allergan Inc., is perhaps the most popular type of product administered in a non-surgical cosmetic procedure in North America, treating over 3 million people in the year 2005 alone. With the number of people treated increasing yearly, you too can experience the remarkable effects of a BOTOX® Cosmetic injections if you are in the Toronto, Ontario area.

Toronto Cosmetic Clinic is licensed to administer BOTOX® Cosmetic injections. From the storage of the vials, the handling, and the administration, all are monitored in a physician directed clinic under the strict supervision of a medical doctor. The actual injection is performed by a medical professional who is actually a BOTOX® Cosmetic trainer for other medical professionals in the field. This is important since it is required that specific standards are met for a safe, and successful treatment.

Since its approval by Health Canada on April 4, 2001 to treat glabellar lines resulting from procerus/corrugator muscles, the FDA followed suit and approved BOTOX® in 2002 for patients aged 18 to 65 years old. In 2006, it was approved to treat lines and creases existing on the forehead and near the eyes (specifically "crow's feet").

100 units of clostridium botulinum, sodium chloride, and Albumin Human (a plasma protein) are in each vial of BOTOX® Cosmetic. The toxin that is BOTOX® is derived from the bacterium clostridium botulinum, type A (BTX-A), which works by producing a purified protein that hinders the release of the chemical acetylcholine (Ach). Acetylcholine is a neurotransmitter that is a chemical naturally present in humans, as well as many other organisms. It exists in the peripheral nervous system as well as the central nervous system, and is responsible for signaling muscles to contract. By preventing the production of acetylcholine, targeted muscles cannot contract, and consequently, the skin overlying the muscle will not form a wrinkle from repeated creasing.

At Toronto Cosmetic Clinic, our professional medical staff will ensure that only an appropriate dosage of BOTOX® Cosmetic is administered during treatment for the safety of the patient. Our experienced BOTOX® specialist, with knowledge of facial anatomy, will determine the amount by assessing the severity of the unwanted wrinkle(s) and the amount of movement in the target muscle.

Treatments should not be arranged with a frequency of more than every 3 months. Results of a treatment are not permanent, and the targeted muscles will normally return to their state prior to the procedure within a few months (usually about 4 months).

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