Anti Wrinkle Injections – Sydney, Canberra & Adelaide
Too many wrinkles? Cosmos Clinic can help create a smooth, natural and youthful appearance using Anti Wrinkle Injections.
Anti Wrinkle Injections are injected into the facial muscles to help relax muscle movement and soften lines and wrinkles. These injections are used to address three main conditions:
- Frown lines or worry lines;
- Crow’s feet or laugh lines; and
- Forehead or surprise lines.
Anti Wrinkle Injections require five to ten injections per area with a very fine needle. No local anaesthetic cream is needed although a very mild discomfort may be experienced.
It takes an average of five days for the Anti Wrinkle Injections to work with visual results varying from three days to two weeks. Make-up can be applied after treatment. You are encouraged to move the muscles in the treated area in the first few hours after the treatment. This will increase the action and onset of the Anti Wrinkle Injections. The effect will last about three to four months. You may develop some bruising which will subside. Other side effects are rare.
Frequently Asked Questions About Anti Wrinkle Injections
1. What are Anti Wrinkle Injections?
Anti Wrinkle Injections are a natural, purified protein that relaxes wrinkle-causing muscles, creating a smoothed and improved appearance. Anti Wrinkle Injections are produced by the bacterium Clostridium Botulinum. It was first used in humans for the treatment of strabismus (“crossed-eyes”) in 1978. It is now used to treat a number of medical conditions including cerebral palsy, migraine, excessive sweating, wry neck, back and facial spasms as well as the treatment of facial wrinkles.
Anti Wrinkle Injections are very safe and are a natural, purified protein derived in a controlled fashion from bacteria like other agents, such as penicillin. Anti Wrinkle Injections are the only medical product of its type with more than twenty years of safe usage involving millions of patients worldwide, comprehensive clinical trials, published studies and extensive clinical practice. Anti Wrinkle Injections are one of the most widely researched medicines in the world with twenty approved indications in more than seventy-five countries.
Anti Wrinkle Injections are a simple, quick and minimally invasive treatment that delivers fast, visible results.
2. How do Anti Wrinkle Injections work?
Anti Wrinkle Injections work by blocking the impulses from the nerves that control muscle movement. When injected into muscle tissue, a muscle relaxation results after about three days such that the muscles can not contract. This creates a smooth rejuvenated appearance of the overlying skin that can last anywhere from three to eight months. When used for the treatment of dynamic facial lines, the effect typically last for about ten to twelve weeks.
3. Are Anti Wrinkle Injections suitable for facial wrinkles?
Anti Wrinkle Injections help to reduce excessive movement of underlying muscles. Lines and wrinkles from sagging skin will not be improved by treatment with Anti Wrinkle Injections. The most commonly treated areas include:
- Frown lines or worry lines between the eyebrows;
- “Surprise” or forehead lines;
- Crows feet or “laugh lines”;
- Non surgical eyebrow lift; and
- Shaping the eyebrows.
In these areas, excessive contraction of the muscles below the skin cause it to wrinkle and eventually “crease”. The facial expressions caused by these particular muscle actions are generally undesirable. “Crease” lines on the skin that do not disappear when stretched out will be improved, but not completely removed by Anti Wrinkle Injections and may need treatment by other methods (see Dermal Fillers and Dermal Stimulator).
Other areas where Anti Wrinkle Injections can be effective include:
- Depressed corners of the mouth;
- Neck bands;
- ‘Bunny’ lines on the nose – the lines seen when sniffing;
- Puckering of the chin; and
- Lower jaw muscles.
4. When will I see results?
Anti Wrinkle Injections cause muscle relaxation of the injected area three to five days after the injection. The full effects may not be seen for two weeks. Cosmos Clinic encourage all patients to return for their complimentary follow appointment after two weeks. Under treating the forehead is a common problem. Cosmos Clinic prefer to treat the forehead conservatively because overdosing this area can lead to forehead drooping.
5. How long will Anti Wrinkle Injections last?
Anti Wrinkle Injections causes muscle relaxation of the injected muscles, which lasts from ten to twelve weeks. During that time, collagen remodeling repairs the damaged collagen beneath the wrinkle line and “fills in” those lines caused by the former movement of the now-paralysed muscle. This effect becomes more apparent with repeated injections and in many cases causes the lines to disappear over time.
This “filling in” effect accounts for some of the confusion surrounding how long Anti Wrinkle Injections actually “lasts”. Patients need to keep in mind that the goal is to minimise the appearance of lines caused by movement, not to have a “frozen face” or to keep the injected muscles paralysed.
Experience with thousands of patients has shown that the vast majority using Anti Wrinkle Injections on a regular basis will only need treatments two or three times a year to maintain the improvement.
6. What does the injection process involve?
Small quantities of Anti Wrinkle Injections are injected into the muscle to be treated using a tiny needle similar to an acupuncture needle. Several tiny injections, approximately five to ten per area, are made. The discomfort is minimal and no anesthetic is required, although a cold pack may sometimes be applied prior to the injections.
Cosmos Clinic use preserved saline from the USA to inject the Anti Wrinkle Injection. Preserved saline reduces the discomfort experienced when the Anti Wrinkle Injection is injected into the muscle.
Anti Wrinkle Injections are a simple lunchtime procedure lasting ten to thirty minutes. As there is NO DOWNTIME, patients can resume normal activities the same day, although vigorous rubbing of the injected areas should be avoided for at least eight hours. Contrary to what was formerly thought, the position of the patient during or after properly performed preparation or injection of Anti Wrinkle Injections does not influence the area or intensity of the effect.
7. What are the costs of Anti Wrinkle Injections?
Prices vary due to the strength of the muscle, size of the area being treated and depth of the wrinkles. Refer to out Anti Wrinkle Injections Cost page for further information.
8. Are there any possible complications?
Anti Wrinkle Injections are safe and effective with the vast majority of patients experiencing no complications. It is not absorbed by the blood stream and only affects the muscles injected. Anti Wrinkle Injections are totally eliminated from the muscle in a few days but the machinery required for the nerve impulse to travel to the muscle is disabled for three to four months.
No serious or long-term health hazards have been attributed to the use of Anti Wrinkle Injections, even after years of use and millions of injections. However, some mild transient side effects can occur including:
- Mild swelling or redness at the injection site which will settle within a few hours;
- Bruising at the injection site can occur but is not common. This can be avoided by the application of ice packs prior to the injection and by carefully inspecting the area to be injected for blood vessels. The bruising settles in two to six days and can be covered with makeup. Smile lines are an area typically affected by bruising;
- Occasionally, the injected muscles will not be weakened enough and touch up injections will be needed for correction after two weeks;
- Dropping of the upper eyelid, which can last up to three weeks is rare. This may be treated with eye drops until it resolves by itself, typically after a few days;
- Drooping of the forehead can occur if too much of the Anti Wrinkle Injection is put in this area.
9. Who should not have Anti Wrinkle Injections?
Patients with neuromuscular disorders such as myesthenia gravis should not be treated with Anti Wrinkle Injections. True allergic reactions to Anti Wrinkle Injections have not been observed. No side effects from Anti Wrinkle Injections have been reported when pregnant or nursing women have been inadvertently treated, although safety during pregnancy or lactation has not been firmly established.
What is my next step?
To book an appointment for Anti Wrinkle Injections or any of the treatments that we offer please contact Cosmos Clinic.