I Had Botox About 11 Days Ago. I Can Still Furrow my Brow. Is This Normal?

Botox usually takes around a week before results are apparent. In some cases it can take up to two weeks.

There are multiple possibilities that can account for why you are not seeing results.

Botox does not work the same way on everyone.

If you are not seeing the results that you want with Botox, then you may want to consider Dysport as an alternative.

Dysport is a botulinum toxin like Botox. However it has fewer proteins surrounding the main molecule.

For some individuals like the patient in the video below, it works better and faster than Botox.

Likewise, Dysport may not work well for other individuals. And Botox can be used as an alternative.

Dysport is a botulinum toxin like Botox. However it has fewer proteins surrounding the main molecule.

For some individuals like the patient in the video below, it works better and faster than Botox.

Likewise, Dysport may not work well for other individuals. And Botox can be used as an alternative.

I would definitely contact your surgeon and discuss your findings as well as return for a follow up visit and possible "top-off"

If you can animate the frown lines then you may not have gotten enough or in the right place.  If you can not animate that area then you just need to be patient to allow the lines to soften.  This will happen over time and will likely require several rounds of botox until the lines are drastically improved.  It just depends on the depth of the lines that you have.

Good luck.

I recommend seeing your physician again to see how many individual injection points he used and how much product was injected. It could be that not enough Botox was used, and he or she could offer you a touch-up. Or, it could be that you have strong and active glabellar muscles that may require more product than expected. Either way, it's best to address with your doctor to see how to best address this.

You should have seen a major improvement 11 days after injection.  There are several reasons why you have gotten an unsatisfactory response.  They include too little botox injected and injection into the wrong areas.  I would revisit your prior injector for a reevaluation and possible touch up.  

Best Wishes,

 

Neil Zemmel, MD

Question: I had BOTOX® 11 days ago, I can still furrow my brow, Is this normal?


Answer: At 11 days I would expect a substantial improvement from the BOTOX®.
There are several possibilities for the furrowing of your brows. You may have very deep or very superficial furrow lines involving the superficial area of the skin that is only partially treated with BOTOX®. The addition of a judicious filler might be of help. Secondly, the BOTOX® may not have been placed in a manner that would maximize the results in the region between your eyebrows. Also, if the remainder of your forehead was not injected with BOTOX®, it is possible that contraction of these forehead muscles could be enough to produce some furrowing as well. It is always best to address your concerns with the doctor who performed the BOTOX® injections.
 

Although it takes up to two full weeks to see the end result of a Botox injection, there should be some muscle relaxation seen as soon as a few days post injection.

Results of Botox injections depend on multiple factors, including:

- a thorough knowledge of facial anatomy

- evaluation of the activity/hyperactivity of the musculature.  Enlarged, overactive muscles require more units of Botox to relax.

- the concentration of Botox in the solution.  If the solution of Botox is dilute, it will tend to spread from the area of injection and not be as effective.

Although Botox is simple to inject, "Bad Botox" results can be seen everywhere. The reason? to get a great Botox result your injector needs to fully understand and know facial anatomy, have an artistic sense (and not just stamp Botox in the same pattern on every patient), used genuine (not fake (Chinese or North Korean source) or gray market ("Canadian pharmacy") Botox, which is fresh (not older than a week), which was mixed properly and is not overly diluted. You do not know how many units you actually received nor how fresh the ? Botox was. (You should ask to see the Botox Bottle and watch out for the Allergan hologram on it which certifies it as the real thing).

I would suggest you return to your doctor and have him look at you and do a "touch up". Even if fresh, undiluted genuine Botox was used properly, some people require more than others.

Good Luck.

Dr. Peter A Aldea

Go back to your injector for a recheck and possible touch up.   Everyone is a bit different but good injection technique is usually the difference between OK Botox and outstanding Botox.  While you are there, educate yourself on placement of injections and the number of units used.  If less than 20 units were used, you probably need more.  If you used more than 20 than it was probably not placed correctly or you have an outstandingly strong muscle.  Either way, give your injector another chance to learn your particular facial anatomy.  Often I will use the minimum dose the very first time so that I can adjust accordingly and not waste your money on Botox units that may not be needed. 

Good luck.