What Is Therapeutic Botox And How Is It Different From Cosmetic Botox?
Botox is commonly used to reduce forehead wrinkles, flatten frown lines, and remove crow's feet, but did you know that Botox can also be used for therapeutic reasons? This is referred to as therapeutic Botox.
What Is Therapeutic Botox?
It may come to use as a shock but most people associate the use of Botox with cosmetic procedures, but Botox can also be used to stop migraines, reduce headaches, and relieve muscle tension and pain.
Botox is the most popular cosmetic treatment and the number one cosmetic procedure. Every year, over seven million Botox procedures are performed, and both men and women have used it to achieve the perfect look. However, people are now using Botox to treat migraines, muscle pains, and a variety of other conditions.
Today, we'll go over the differences between cosmetic and therapeutic Botox, as well as everything you need to know about therapeutic Botox and its benefits.
What’s the difference between therapeutic Botox and cosmetic Botox?
Most people are more familiar with cosmetic Botox, so before we get into the specifics of how therapeutic Botox works, let's look at some of the distinctions between cosmetic and therapeutic Botox.
What is cosmetic Botox used for?
Cosmetic Botox is used to treat a wide range of facial concerns, including the following:
Cosmetic Botox works by relaxing the muscles and smoothing the wrinkles on your face.
What is therapeutic Botox used for?
Therapeutic Botox, as opposed to cosmetic Botox, is used to treat medical conditions.
Therapeutic Botox is mainly used for:
Botox relaxes your muscles or reduces glandular or nerve activity, which helps to alleviate the pain or symptoms of the conditions listed above.
How does Botox work?
Botox works by blocking or limiting the activity of muscles, nerves, or glands in the body that correspond to the area being treated.
Muscle weakness aids in the suppression of facial expressions that cause deep lines, resulting in fewer wrinkles.
Reduced muscular activity for therapeutic purposes can alleviate shoulder and back pain, muscle spasms, and jaw clenching to name a few.
Reduced nerve activity for therapeutic purposes is particularly beneficial in chronic migraines, where the transmission of pain sensations is limited in the treated areas of the head and neck.
In terms of reduced glandular activity, Botox is particularly useful in reducing sweat production in the treated area without affecting overall perspiration, which is required for optimal temperature regulation.
Are cosmetic Botox and therapeutic Botox processes different?
The procedure is very similar whether you are receiving cosmetic or therapeutic Botox.
You'll be subjected to a thorough examination to ensure that all of your needs are met and that your budget covers your treatment, though therapeutic Botox is frequently covered to some extent by most third-party health insurance companies.
The Botox will be injected into the appropriate area, and you will begin to see or feel the therapeutic effects in as little as 2-3 days, but the full effect may take up to 2 weeks.
You will need to maintain your treatment every three months with both cosmetic and therapeutic Botox (an average of six months between treatments for excessive sweating.)
One of the only differences between the two types of Botox is that in therapeutic Botox you’ll have to have a medical examination & diagnosis before you are given and written a Botox prescription before the actual procedure can be planned and booked.
This is done so that the examiner can clearly determine the source and cause of your symptoms, determine whether Botox is appropriate for your treatment, and then devise the best treatment plan for you.
How long does Botox last?
How long Botox treatment lasts completely varies from person to person, but on average, the therapeutic effects will last about 3-6 months depending on how it is used, as stated above.
It's important to note that a single Botox treatment will not last your entire life, so you'll need to get more injections if you want to continue benefiting from it.
Are there any side effects of therapeutic Botox?
Botox has very few side effects when used for therapeutic purposes, which are also quite rare, but some examples could include:
The side effects are very rare and temporary, but they also vary depending on where the Botox is injected.
How does Botox for migraines work?
Botox was approved by the FDA in 2010 for the treatment of adult headaches and migraines. So, if you have chronic migraines, Botox can help reduce and, in some cases, completely eliminate your pain.
A series of Botox injections will help prevent migraines and keep you from having to take painkillers and suffer the side effects.
Some medications used to treat chronic migraines can cause headaches as well as a variety of other side effects, making Botox a treatment option to be seriously considered.
Botox relieves migraines by blocking nerve pain signals to the brain, resulting in a reduction in pain.
In conclusion, Botox is the perfect solution for you if you’re suffering from intense muscle pain, headaches or even migraines.