Blog Question:
When I get Botox, how do I know if it’s really Botox?
Blog Answer:
This is an excellent question because Botox looks like water.
(A patient of mine was sure another doctor had charged her for Botox but used water.)
It helps to be informed.
Here’s where the problem starts – and 5 tips to stay safe.
Botox is the only USA-made FDA approved neurotoxin.
It arrives within a day of a doctor placing an order.
Other neurotoxins such as Dysport and Xeomin come from abroad.
Transportation and customs delays can mean a week or more before foreign products arrive.
During that time, they decay unless they are kept frozen.
So in the USA, Botox is the most active, most reliable neurotoxin.
Being a fairly expensive product, there are many underground salesmen offering people “cheap” Botox. This type of Botox, is either stolen or fake.
So who buys from these underground salesmen? Anyone, from an unethical doctor to people with no medical training or license who make money giving illegal injections. Beauticians and photographers are common culprits.
The FDA recently issued an alert that a dangerous fake Botox is being sold across the USA.
So here are the 5 tips on how to avoid being a Botox victim:
1. Ask to see the Botox vial. Real Botox vials have a lot number on every vial. If there is not a lot number on your “Botox” vial, it is a fake injection. Walk out!
2. The vial isn’t available for you to see. Maybe the excuse is that pre-filled syringes are used. Botox doesn’t come in pre-filled syringes. Walk out!
3. The price is too good to be true… Botox regularly priced at or below $8 a unit is not likely to be real Botox – because one can’t cover overhead at those prices.
4. Get treated at a medical clinic, not a salon or spa. Ask to see the medical license of the person treating you (It should be a licensed doctor or a nurse or PA working under the supervision of a licensed doctor).
5. In an ideal world, only get your Botox injections at the office of a Board Certified plastic surgeon, facial plastic surgeon or dermatologist. We are the only doctors actually trained in cosmetic medicine – and the ones who best understand how to use it and the dangers of using fake product.