What are the different areas for Botulinum toxin injection?
For first time candidates for Botulinum toxin, the number of areas to get injected can cause some confusion. For 'standard' upper face anti-wrinkle injections, there are typically between one and three areas injected. There are other advanced anti-wrinkle treatments which I will cover in a different blog post. However, let's begin with the commonest areas.
'One area' anti-wrinkle injections would typically be the crows feet, those little wrinkles beside your eyes that are visible when you smile or squint. It is marked with a '1' in the above diagram (because the lady in the picture has her head slightly tilted I have only marked one side, however, the price would include both sides). The forehead is broken up into two areas which pull in opposite directions. Almost without exception they are treated together as two areas. I will explain why below...
Why is the forehead considered to be two areas?
This is a diagram of the facial muscles. The main muscle of the forehead is called frontalis, it pulls the forehead upwards. So if we weaken its action with Botulinum Toxin injections, the forehead and eyebrows will have a tendency to go downwards (it is a common misconception that giving more dose to the forehead raises the eyebrows, it actually does the opposite). Below that, between the eyes and around the middle of the face over the brow, there are muscles called procerus and the corrugators. Their function is to pull downwards on the face. So weakening it with Botox causes a lift in the eyebrows and forehead.
If you only treat procerus and the corrugators, it treats the frown lines or '11s' lines between the eyes, however, the action of the forehead muscles then becomes dominant. The result of this are so called 'Spock' eyebrows or a startled look.
If you only treat the forehead muscle, frontalis, the eyebrows and forehead tend to move downwards as the muscles that have that function are unopposed. At worst that can give dropped eyebrows and a slightly angry look. This is particularly the case if you have low set eyebrows.
So in order to have balance, it is generally advisable to have both the upper and lower forehead treated together. There are some uncommon exceptions to this, however, if you are such an exception I will advise you on that. There should be some movement in the eyebrows so you can express yourself and have a relaxed, natural looking enhancement.
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I perform several different treatments including Anti-Wrinkle Injections, Lip, Cheek and Jaw Fillers, Profhilo and Fat Dissolving Injections. Feel free to make an inquiry or have a free consultation.