FAQ botulinum toxin vistabex

Q. I hear more and more about botox, botulinum toxin, botox party, botulinum-based creams, etc. What are they?
A. Botox is the commercial name of botulinum neurotoxin. There are seven types of botulinum neurotoxin. The ones that can be used in humans and are currently found on the market are type A (Vistabex, Vistabel, Botox, Botoxin, Dysport) and type B (Myobloc and Neurobloc).
In Italy, the use of botulinum toxin was authorized by the Ministry of Health in 2004 limited to only one kind of medication named Vistabex (in Italy), Botox (in England and in the United States) or Vistabel (in France), which can be used only by a specialist in plastic surgery, dermatology, neurology or maxillofacial surgery
Botulinum toxin is a medication that allows the temporary inhibition of the mimic muscles of the face, thus reducing the formation of worry lines.
Botox parties are social events in which there is a plastic surgeon who, during the party, gives injections of botulinum to the guests who ask him to do it.
Botulinum-based creams, recently advertised in newspapers and magazines, have a low concentration of botulinum-derived substances; for this reason, they are not very effective.

Q. Is botulinum toxin safe?
A. Yes. At first, botulinum toxin was used in medicine to prevent neuromuscular spasms of the eyelids and to correct strabismus, but starting from 1987 it began to be used in the United States even in cosmetic surgery.
In Italy, the use of botulinum toxin was authorized by the Ministry of Health in 2004 only for the treatment of glabellar wrinkles on patients not older than 65, provided that the preparation was injected by a specialist in plastic surgery, dermatology, neurology or maxillo-facial surgery.
During all these years, no serious side effects have ever emerged in relation to the use of this drug but, as happens with all drugs, the patient may anyhow show allergy and intolerance to the toxin or to some excipient.