Did the Doctor Inject Too Much Botox?

Question

According to my past experience with Botox, I find that it actually freezes my frown line the moment it was injected. I can see the changes of the skin texture on the area and the muscle weakens.
Am I over sensitive? The total effect take place about 5 days. I feel that the doc might had injected too much. Thank you.

Harold J. Kaplan, MD · Answer

Hi YNY,
Botox generally takes about 1 week to take full effect.You would not know immediately after injection if your practitioner has injected too much, but generally at 5 days after you would. 
Do you have any side effects like eyelid or brow drooping? If you feel that something about the appearance leads you to believe that  you have had too much Botox injected then you should get back in touch with your practitioner (probably about 2 weeks after the initial injections) to go over your results.

Otto Joseph Placik, MD · Answer

Botox does not generally take effect immediately. However, it is possible that your physician mixed it with a local anesthetic which will immediately relax the muscle.
Another explanation has already been given regarding swelling and distention of the injected area.  Although the package insert states and most physicians state that the effect takes 3-5 days to work, I have had many patients who claim that it is effective within the first 24 hours. Clearly this is a common observation.

David Shafer, MD, FACS · Answer

Botox does not work immediately. The change that you see immediately is from swelling, not the Botox. Botox generally starts working at 3 to 7 days. However, I have seen it start working after 1 day as well, but this is very unusual. As long as your final results after two weeks are nice, then there is no issue with the amount of Botox. Good luck.

Steven Wallach, MD · Answer

Botox will take about 1 full week for it to take full effect..  It will not work immediately.  You may notice the lines improve because of the fluid administration.

Sirish Maddali, MD · Answer

Most patients take between 3-7 days after Botox treatment to see the effects. The full effect may be evident in one to two weeks. If you feel results "immediately" then it is likely due to swelling and not due to Botox. However, if the result looks good in 5 days and you are happy, then that is fine. The only way to say that a doctor gave you too much Botox is if a lot of neighboring muscles are also paralyzed.

Did the Doctor Inject Too Much Botox?

Answers (8)