Charging for Botox or Restylane by the Syringe. Is That Normal Pratice?

Botox is usually charged per unit (not syringe) and Restylane is charged per full syringe. Some injectors also charge by the area treated.

Generally, clinics provide a per unit price for BOTOX, and you simply multiply that amount with the number of units administered during treatment. For Restylane, generally the cost is by full syringe rather than unit.  

It is normal to charge for a syringe of filler, or vial of Sculpta. Left over product is not recommended to be saved by the manufacturer.  Botox is usually charged by the unit or the cosmetic area but if a physician typically uses the same amount of units per cosmetic area and they prefill a syirnge of botox, then maybe they're charging per area and not syringe.  Syringes of fillers are prepared in advance by the manufacturer but the physician draws up exactly what they wish in the numbers of units of Botox into each syringe.

BOTOX comes dry in a small vial.  It is reconstituted sterile with saline and then drawn up into individual syringes.  Your doctor will know precisely how many units are in that syringe.  You should know how many units you are paying for even if they price the service by area or by syringe.  This way you can compare offices and services.  If they will not or cannot tell you how many units you were treated with, you are being scammed and should look for care else where.

Restylane comes in prepackaged syringes of various sizes: ).5 ml, 1 ml and 2 ml.  So again you need to know what syringe size you are getting.  Do not let the office "store" the unused portion of the syringe.  There is no way to guarantee sterility once the seal is broke.  You do not even know if the partial syringe they are pull out is yours or Mrs Jones.  There should be no such thing as left over filler.  No one gets enough filler.  Every drop should be placed at the time that syringe is opened the first time.

Restylane comes in syringes and the costs will range generally from $400 to $700 (depending on the area). I charge $550/syringe for traditional restylane and slightly more for restylane lyft and restylane silk. Botox or Dysport is dosed in units, but a unit of Botox will treat more than a unit of Dysport. Typically, 40 units of Botox equates to 100 units of dysport. The cost of a unit of botox will range typically from $10/unit to $18/unit (depending on where you are in the country). We are on the lower end of that range due to our ability  to purchase more economically from Allergen as a top injector of Allergen products.Some injectors will charge per area but these centers may mislead patients if they do not follow Allergen protocols.

Greetings~

Most offices in our area charge by the unit for Botox...so you are only charged for what is drawn up from the bottle and used on you in that visit. One bottle of Botox can be divided among multiple patients because a specific amount can be drawn up without risking contamination. Restylane, on the other hand is sold only by the syringe.  One syringe is only used for one person, they may not be shared.  If you don't use all of the Restylane in the area you ideally want treated, your injector can advise you on where else it may look best.

Good luck~

Dr. Grant Stevens    

It is common practice to charge for Restylane by the syringe.  BOTOX is charged by the unit since it doesn’t come in syringes.  Most of these treatments are based on the amount of product used.  Some doctors do charge differently depending on the area injected.

There is no standard as to how offices charge for these products.  Restylane comes by the syringe and is charged as such since it cannot be used on anyone else.  If you do not need the full syringe, it is discarded.  Botox can be charged by area or by units.  It is important to ask the concentration and units per injection and how many injections will be performed.  That is because it can be diluted a number of different ways.

Restylane is typically charged by the syringe or by cc as the syringes come in different sizes. I use the entire syringe for the same patient, so it is not shared.  Botox is charged by either the number of units or by area.  

Would you take your car to a garage and have the attendant put gas into your tank and then pay him a certain amount of money with out actually knowing  (or seeing) the exact amount of gas you received? What if he charged you for more than he actually gave you?  Same thing for Botox. You should know how many 'units' of Botox you received. Being charged for areas injected/treated leaves you open to dishonest charges although I'd hope/expect those charging by the area actually charge fairly. However you could actually be paying more per unit than necessary because your injector hides his per unit charges by area charging.