New Study Upholds Safety of Botox and Fillers
Houston Plastic and Craniofacial Surgery
More and more men and women are going in for minor cosmetic procedures such as Botox to reduce the early signs of aging. Botox is designed to smooth out wrinkles and facial fillers plump up features that have lost fullness due to aging or sun exposure. These treatments are popular as they involve minimal downtime and produce good results, though not as long lasting as with more invasive procedures such as face lifts.
It is well known that cosmetic treatments like Botox, facial fillers and laser skin treatments have side effects such as bruising, swelling or lumpiness. Now, according to a recent report, a study published in JAMA Dermatology suggests that Botox and dermal fillers are ver y safe and have a very low rate of minor side effects.
The researchers studied the experiences of 23 dermatologists and looked at the results of a total of 20,399 procedures. The study notes that even while there are chances for these minor side effects to occur with these cosmetic procedures, this happens only in less than 1 percent of cases. The study was confined to the remarks of only dermatologists who routinely perform these procedures, which could mean that negative outcomes could occur more often when the treatment is performed by providers without much experience.
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Only 1 in every 416 procedures noted a negative outcome such as bruising, swelling or lumpiness in the skin
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With procedures such as Botox, there were side effects in just 1 in 3,333 cases
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Fillers such as Juvederm caused lumpiness or beading in about 1 in 135 cases
The low rate of side effects and complications could make such treatments more attractive than a facelift which is an invasive treatment performed under anesthesia. Having multiple minor procedures could be better than having a single invasive procedure. Most of these minor treatments require a recovery period of just a day, which allows people to meet their aesthetic goals even with their busy schedules.
The demand for cosmetic minimally invasive procedures increased rapidly during the past decade. The 2013 annual report of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) notes that cosmetic minimally-invasive procedures rose 144% since 2000, and that 13.4 million were performed last year.
Contact Houston Plastic and Craniofacial Surgery Sean Boutros, M.D. 6400 Fannin, Suite 2290 Houston, TX 77030 713-791-0700 713-791-0703 fax