Hey, Ventura, There Will Soon Be FOUR Botoxes

Within the next 2-3 years, you won't call your local plastic surgeon and just ask for Botox.  You and your doctor will have to choose between at least 4 types of botulinum neurotoxin type A....

• Botox
• Dysport
• Purtox
• Xeomin

In 2002, the FDA approved the first botulinum neurotoxin for the cosmetic reduction of dynamic facial wrinkles--Botox.  Botox has since established itself as the first-line treatment for...

• frown lines between the eyebrows
• horizontal wrinkles on the forehead
• crow's feet
• bunny lines on the sides of the nose
• non-surgical eyebrow lifting
• non-surgical lifting of the corners of the mouth

My patients and I have loved Botox.  The results have been outstanding; there have been few (if any) side effects; and overall satisfaction rates have been greater than 90%.

On April 30, 2009, Dysport became the second botulinum neurotoxin FDA-approved for cosmetic use.  I just received my first shipment today, and I suspect that this product will function nearly identically to Botox.  (Next week, I'll blog about my initial experiences.)

The Mentor Corporation (Santa Barbara, CA) has completed clinical trials for a 3rd botulinum neurotoxin--Purtox.  While this product may truly be more pure than Botox and Dysport, it remains to be seen whether that purity really matters.  For example, I've never had an infection, allergy, or any major side effect with Botox, so Botox is already pretty darn pure.

Xeomin is still in the "pipeline"--still in the middle phases of clinical trials.  I don't have much information on this product (except that it is being developed in Greensboro, NC, and in Newark, CA), but I will try my best to keep you in the loop!