How Much Should I Expect to Pay for Botox?
Does Insurance Ever Cover Botox?
When Botox is used for cosmetic purposes, insurance does not cover it. In select cases, patients who turn to Botox to treat a medical concern may have their treatments covered by insurance. If you’re planning to use Botox for a medical reason, it’s a good idea to check with your insurer first to find out if they’ll cover the treatment.
How Does Botox Work?
What Is Treatment Like?
This cosmetic treatment is quick, straightforward, and easy. During your appointment, you’ll recline comfortably in a treatment chair. After spending a few minutes evaluating your facial muscles and deciding where your treatment should be administered, we’ll make a series of tiny injections.
The injections will be small and quick enough that anesthesia is not needed, although we may numb the skin first to maximize your comfort. Appointments take less than a half-hour and involve no downtime, so you’ll be able to return immediately to your regular schedule.
How Soon Will I See Results?
You’ll notice some signs of improvement during the first few days after your treatment, but it will take about two weeks for your results to fully develop. Patients are often able to enjoy their results for about four months, and follow-up treatments can be scheduled to maintain your look.
What Kind of Wrinkles Does It Work On?
Botox can be effectively used to treat dynamic wrinkles. These are the lines that form as a result of repetitive facial motions and expressions. Year after year of laughing, squinting, scowling, and making many other facial expressions can take its toll on the skin.
Botox works by relaxing the muscles that drive all that facial activity, which in terms softens the lines on the face. Botox is not effective on other types of wrinkles, including the ones that form as a result of years of exposure to the sun, cigarette smoke, and other environmental factors.
Can Botox Be Combined With Other Treatments?
Botox can easily be combined with other cosmetic treatments, including dermal fillers and liquid facelifts, to accomplish the patient’s cosmetic goals. After evaluating your skin, we’ll be able to recommend a combination of treatments that will best meet your needs.
What Else Can Botox Be Used For?
Although it’s best known as a wrinkle-buster, Botox can also be used to treat migraines, Temporomandibular joint disorder, and hyperhidrosis, a condition that involves excessive sweating. Doctors also prescribe Botox to treat eye muscle disorders, including Strabismus, which can lead to “crossed eye” condition, and Blepharospasm, an eyelid abnormality.
Botox can also be used to address cosmetic issues that go beyond lines and wrinkles. It is sometimes used to shape angry eyebrows, tighten up a falling nasal tip, and resolve a gummy smile, or a smile that reveals too much gum.
Can It Be Used to Alter the Shape of the Lip?
In recent years Botox has been used to give patients a lip flip, or an enhancement that gives the upper lip a full, slightly flared look. This cosmetic enhancement is achieved with a carefully placed Botox injection that causes the upper lip to relax just enough that it rolls gently upward for a pouty look.
Is It Safe?
Botox was approved by the FDA in 2002 and has been widely and effectively used ever since.
Why Should I Seek Out Affordable Botox Treatments?
Natural Results
The practice of administering Botox treatments has evolved quite a bit in recent decades. Today, the injections are administered so that they don’t completely wipe away all facial expressions. That means you won’t have to worry about looking frozen. Your face will look more youthful and relaxed, but your results will also appear completely natural.
We’ll also talk with you in advance and take into consideration the results you’re hoping to get. Some patients want to wipe fine lines away as much as possible, while others prefer more subtle results. We can work with you to achieve your goals.
Convenient Treatments
If you’re looking for a non-invasive treatment that requires no downtime but still delivers results, Botox treatments are for you. These appointments are short enough and easy enough that they can be worked into even the busiest of schedules. Botox is an easy way to turn back the clock.
Helpful at Any Age
Botox treatments can be incorporated into a patient’s anti-aging regimen at any age. Patients in their late twenties are increasingly turning to Botox as a preventative measure aimed at keeping early lines and wrinkles at bay. When a patient is in his or her thirties or forties, Botox can be used to soften wrinkles as they begin to appear.
And for individuals in their fifties, sixties, and beyond, this injectable treatment can be used to refresh aging skin. Botox won’t shave decades off your appearance, but it can help soften and rejuvenate your appearance.
Works on All Skin Types and Tones
This injectable works on all skin types and tones. It won’t influence the color or texture of your skin, but your facial skin will take on a new glow and radiance once your results have taken effect.
Am I a Botox Candidate?
To find out if you’re a Botox candidate, you’ll need to schedule a consultation with Dr. Wendy E. Roberts, who is both a board-certified dermatologist and a board-certified dermatopathologist. Dr. Roberts earned her medical degree at Stanford and completed surgical and dermatology residences as well as a pathology fellowship. She specializes in cosmetic dermatology, generational dermatology, and ethnic skin of color. During your consultation, Dr. Roberts will evaluate your skin and talk with you about your cosmetic goals and concerns. She’ll work with you to determine if you are a candidate.
That said, there are several signs you may be particularly suited for Botox injections:
You Want Smoother, Younger-Looking Skin
If you’re bothered by fines lines and wrinkles and you want to smooth those early signs of aging away, Botox may be a nice option for you. It quickly and easily improves the look of your skin. Some patients turn to Botox as a one-time treatment before a special event, but many others schedule appointments several times a year and view the injections as a regular component of their anti-aging regimen.
You’re in Good Health
Botox candidates should be in good overall health and should not be pregnant or breastfeeding. Patients who have a neurological disease may not be candidates. Individuals also must be 18 years of age or older to undergo this treatment.
Your Skin Is Healthy
It helps if the skin in the treatment area is healthy, in good shape, and free of infection and inflammation.
You Have Realistic Expectations
The best patients schedule these injections with a full understanding of how the treatment works and are realistic about the results it offers. This treatment can improve your appearance and help you achieve a more youthful look, but it won’t make you look 18 again.
How Does Botox Differ From Dysport and Xeomin?
Botox, Dysport, and Xeomin are all neuromodulators that are frequently used all over the face. Although Botox is the oldest and most recognized brand, all three work in similar ways to ease the appearance of fine lines. But Dysport and Xeomin differ from Botox in subtle ways. Dysport injections are usually about 2 centimeters deeper than Botox, which means they can cover a wider treatment area. Dysport results also tend to develop more quickly than Botox, but they don’t last as long.
The primary difference between Botox and Xeomin lies in the formulation of the two injectable treatments. Xeomin is a pure form of botulinum toxin, while Botox contains that toxin as well as additional proteins. The pure nature of Xeomin means that it does not have to be refrigerated by your physician before it is injected. While this may be slightly more convenient for your physician when it comes to storing the injectable, it doesn’t make much of a difference for patients.
What Else Can I Do to Keep My Skin Looking Good?
Botox delivers powerful results, but it shouldn’t be the only component in your anti-aging regimen. Drinking plenty of water and eating a healthy diet, wearing sunscreen, and getting plenty of rest can are all steps you can take to keep your skin looking its best. Your at-home skincare routine is also important. Regularly cleansing, exfoliating, and moisturizing your skin is a great way of keeping it healthy.
Are You Ready to Try Affordable Botox Treatments?
Are you ready to turn back the clock and achieve healthier younger-looking skin? Affordable Botox treatments can smooth away fine lines and wrinkles, improving the look of your skin with a minimum of hassle and no downtime. What are you waiting for? Call Dr. Wendy E. Roberts in Rancho Mirage, CA, and schedule a Botox consultation today.