#botoxmiami

Tox. What is it? Where did it come from? Is it safe?

Botulinum Toxin A or Tox, as we call it- is a protein, first discovered centuries ago as a muscle relaxer derived from the bacterium Clostridium botulinum.

So how did a bacterium become the most popular and ever growing, minimally invasive cosmetic treatment?

Well, strap in for this one, it’s going to be a crazy historical ride…

Going all the way back to the 1820’s, German physician Justinus Kerner was the first to create a medical study around this intriguing bacterium. This study found Clostridium botulinum could be therapeutic in small doses.

The toxin was then used in scientific studies during the 1960s and 70’s then in 1989, Oculinum later renamed Botox®, the most recognized brand name of Botulinum Toxin A, received its first FDA approval to treat crossed eyes and eye twitching.

The discovery of Tox’s cosmetic uses came about in an accidental way. Canadian eye doctor Jean Carruthers was using Tox to treat blepharospasm (eye twitching) in 1989, the patient she was treating complained that Jean didn’t inject her forehead, saying that the injections made her facial lines disappear. Dr. Carruthers then brought her discovery to her husband, a dermatologist. The couple began experimenting their newly discovered, wrinkle-relaxing treatment, later publishing their studies in 1992. At this point, the off-label uses of Tox became so popular it created a national shortage. 

By 2002, Botox® Cosmetic received its FDA approval for cosmetic treatments. Since then, multiple other brands of Tox (Xeomin® Dysport®, Jeuveau®) have received FDA approval for wrinkle reduction in different areas on the face. Tox is now commonly used to treat lines in the glabella (between the eyebrows, known as the frown lines), crow’s feet, and forehead areas.

Now twenty years later, Tox has a long safety record and is widely accepted as the gold standard in wrinkle reduction.

We’ve all heard it before; Botox will turn you into this frozen faced, emotionless person. But- that’s simply not the case at BLUR, The Kendall, FL Botox Bar.

When someone has that over frozen look, the reality is their provider gave them way too much Tox. This happens then the clients are not told how much (or anything at all!) about their Tox treatment. This never happens at BLUR because we are completely TRANSPARENT with every client’s Tox dosing, at every treatment. In fact, TRANSPARENCY is one of BLUR Tox Bar’s guiding principles. Our clients are always encouraged to voice their tox dose preferences at every visit, and therefore need never get a “frozen look”, unless of course they prefer it!

Transparency

Our BLUR Matrix is our standardized dosing guide, and its recommendations always lead our injectors to offer a relaxed but never frozen result. Every client is different, but our BLUR Matrix takes in to account your skin age and wrinkle severity to provide a Tox unit recommendation based on our founder Dr. J’s 20 years of Botox injection experience. When we make a recommendation, we always try to understand our client’s desires and look to educate them on what increases and decreases from the BLUR Matrix recommendation would accomplish. It is our goal to empower every client with the knowledge to make the best decision for their skin! 

Proof

The proof of how Tox does not make you a frozen creature can easily be seen in a study of two twins, followed for 13 years with one receiving regular Tox treatments and one abstaining. According to this study published in the medical journal “Archives of Facial Plastic Surgery”, long term Botox treatment can prevent the development of facial lines, aka wrinkles. The twin that was regularly receiving Tox had significantly younger appearing skin, while the other twin had wrinkles. When comparing the photos, you can still see they are twins; the twin that was receiving the Tox dose not look like a different person, or unrecognizable compared to her sister. She simply just looks younger. This is the goal of BLUR Tox Bar’s Tox protocol, to offer a refreshed natural albeit younger look for all our clients.