Throughout your life, your face expresses your emotions. Over time, expression lines gradually develop, resulting in wrinkles, creases and crow’s feet. While expression lines are a visual representation of your experiences in life, they can also make you appear older than your actual age, or more tired and stressed.

For 20 years, Skin Therapeutics has provided Botox injections and other aesthetic treatments to more than 3,000 patients — including many who have entrusted us with their skin health for as long as we’ve been treating patients.

We serve patients in Ellicott City, Columbia, Elkridge and the broader Baltimore area. The relationships we’ve built with our patients over our years of service have encouraged many to continue visiting us or recommending us to friends and family from as far away as Virginia, Delaware, North and South Carolina, New Jersey, New York and even Florida.

What Is Botox?

Botox injections are a nonsurgical treatment designed to minimize the appearance of moderate to severe wrinkles, crow’s feet and expression lines. Botox injections, which are made of a neurotoxin called botulinum toxin type A, temporarily relax and paralyze the nerves that cause muscles to contract and create expression lines.

Wrinkles vary in severity depending on where they develop on the face, as well as other characteristics unique to you, your health and lifestyle. We will work with you to develop a treatment plan to determine how many units of Botox each treatment area needs to reduce or soften existing wrinkles. We will also recommend using Botox injections as a preventative method to stop wrinkles from forming by relaxing the muscles responsible for creating lines, creases and folds.

The FDA approved Botox for cosmetic purposes in 2002, and its efficacy and safety has been proven by more than 16 years of scientific and medical studies.

Before & Afters

Results from Botox injections are not immediate, but you should start to notice a visible reduction in the appearance of wrinkles and lines within 24 to 48 hours. Results are not permanent but remain apparent for about 4 months.

Repeat Botox injections are recommended to maintain your improved appearance and to continue combatting lines and wrinkles. After multiple treatments, you should begin to notice visible results lasting for upwards of 6 to 8 months.

Are You a Good Candidate for Botox Treatment?

Botox injections are an effective procedure for the treatment of:

• Moderate to severe wrinkles, lines and creases, including crow’s feet
• Expression lines, such as smile, frown and worry lines around the mouth and forehead
• Nasolabial folds (creases around the nose)
• Vertical neck bands
• Excessive sweating

During consultation, our team will help you decide if you’re a good candidate for a Botox injection. In general, the best candidates are:

• Those seeking to reduce visible signs of aging, such as wrinkles, creases, crow’s feet and other expression lines; have visible neckbands; or suffer from excessive sweating
• Physically healthy
• Not pregnant or nursing
• At least 18 years old
• Not experiencing symptoms of a rash, cold sore or other skin conditions
• Not diagnosed with a neuromuscular disease, such as multiple sclerosis

During your consultation, we ask that you provide us with your medical history, including medications and allergies. We may recommend you stop taking any anti-inflammatory or blood-thinning medications or other NSAIDs for a period of 2 weeks prior to treatment.

You may also be advised to stop Retin-A and tretinoin use for a period of 24 hours before treatment; alcohol use should also be avoided during this time period.

What to Expect During and After Your Botox Treatment

We will contact you a few days before your appointment to discuss the procedure and help you prepare for treatment. We will also provide aftercare instructions so you know what to expect in the hours and days following the injection.

A typical Botox injection only takes about 10 minutes but may take a little longer depending on the number of treatment areas and severity of wrinkles. If this is your first Botox treatment, we may use less solution than usual to determine its effectiveness for your unique concerns before scheduling a touch-up treatment in the near future.

The injection is usually painless and does not require anesthesia, although you may feel a slight pinch or discomfort as the injection is administered.

If your individualized treatment plan calls for it, your practitioner may also inject dermal fillers immediately following your Botox injection. By combining the two procedures, you may have better and longer-lasting results over fewer visits.

You can return to your normal activities immediately after treatment, however you should take caution to avoid heavy exertion or exercise on that day. Side effects are mild and include redness, bruising and swelling around the injection site.

Avoid touching the treatment area for at least 3 hours after treatment. You should also refrain from laying down for at least 4 hours to avoid the possibility of developing a drooping eyelid from the Botox solution migrating into the eye area. Refrain from cosmetic laser treatments and microdermabrasion for at least 10 days after a Botox injection.

Related Treatments

Botox injections can be combined with dermal fillers, another type of nonsurgical procedure, to provide you with additional benefits. 

More importantly, Botox may increase the efficacy of fillers. By temporarily paralyzing the muscles in your treatment areas, Botox may reduce the rate at which fillers break down, effectively increasing the length of time results are visible.

Botox injections could be paired with dermal fillers to:

• Prevent wrinkles, creases and lines from appearing
• Reduce the appearance of existing wrinkles
• Fill in and add volume to lines and creases

Your individualized treatment plan is based on your specific skin and concerns, so Botox injections may be one of the first, but not last, procedures we recommend to fully address your needs. By considering both your medical skin aesthetics with your overall skin health, we may recommend additional or alternative procedures, such as:

• JUVÉDERM, Restylane or Revance dermal fillers restore volume and plumpness to skin
• Jeuveau, Dysport or Xeomin injectables use different botulinum toxin A formulas
• Radiofrequency microneedling is a minimally-invasive procedure that uses radiofrequency energy to reduce fine lines and wrinkles and rejuvenate the skin
• Laser/intense pulsed light is a noninvasive treatment that uses a combination of technologies to tighten skin, improve texture and contour and even out skin color
• Chirally correct chemical peels are gentle and effective chemical peels to even out the skin and reduce signs of aging (such as wrinkles and fine lines)
• Epidermal leveling/dermaplaning is a type of exfoliation that removes the topmost layer of skin to smooth its texture and rejuvenate the tissue
• Plasma IQ uses microbeams of plasma to tighten the skin, reducing wrinkles and fine lines

To fully address both skin health and aesthetics, we may also propose changes to your skin care routine and product regimen. We may also recommend you visit a nutritionist (located in our building) to help you make changes to your diet to improve your skin health in combination with the treatments we provide.

FAQ

How long will the results last?

Botox is not permanent. The results of each Botox injection last about 4 months, but may last upwards of 6 to 8 months after repeat treatments. As part of your individualized care, we’ll help you plan for and schedule subsequent injections to maintain your results and support your renewed appearance.

Are Botox injections noticeable?

The success of a Botox injection depends on the skill and experience of the practitioner providing it. Our staff of highly trained specialists is experienced with the proper technique to subtly deliver Botox, so the only thing you or anyone else will notice are the results. Your face will not look unnatural or overdone, but it will look like you have fewer wrinkles and lines!

When should I begin getting Botox?

Botox is available for anyone 18 years of age or older, although patients often begin to get injections in their 30s. Preventative Botox treatment can begin at a younger age, but everyone is different. Schedule a consultation with us to discuss if and when it makes sense for your unique situation and needs.

How is Botox different from Dysport and Xeomin?

Botox, Dysport and Xeomin are three types of FDA-approved neurotoxin treatments that use botulinum toxin type A as the active ingredient. However, each product is formulated differently, impacting the dosage amount, how soon results become apparent and how long results last.

Does insurance cover Botox injections?

Botox injections are considered a cosmetic treatment and are not typically covered by insurance. In other cases, Skin Therapeutics does not accept insurance.